No one is immune to questioning God's attentiveness to prayer. How many times do prayers seem to "bounce off the ceiling"? How often does He seem silent when we most need to hear His voice?
"How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart all the day? How long will my enemy be exalted over me?" (Psalm 13:1-2)
There is consolation in knowing that a man after God's own heart also questioned His silence. But for David, questions about silence never lead to despair. Present circumstances never blinded this man of God to past blessings or future hope. "But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, Because He has dealt bountifully with me." (Psalm 13:5-6)
Yahweh God had "dealt bountifully" with David in the past, and he knew in the future his heart would rejoice and that he would once again sing for joy. The "nasty now" did not negate yesterday's blessings or tomorrow's hope.
Nothing is more perplexing than present pain and God's silence. I've walked through plenty of valleys of emotional and spiritual pain when the silence was deafening. I've raised an angry fist at God (it pains me to admit that), and I've been face down on the floor in tears and anguish. And yet God was silent when I thought I most desperately needed His voice and touch. But, I've always eventually walked out of the valley and back into the sunshine of joy and communion with Him again. The valleys have always led to a level path and eventually a mountaintop experience.
Perhaps the hope and truth of the coming kingdom of God to earth ignites a fire and passion within me like nothing else because it represents the fullest and best experience of life. Dark valleys will be forever vanquished, along with all of life's most painful experiences. Surrounded by a glistening clean and pure environment, we will savor the most enriching relationship possible with one another, and with our Creator, and His Son. Prayer will no longer be a struggle. Our Father's thoughts will be clearly impressed upon our minds, and His voice will never cease to ring pleasingly in our ears.
We've grown accustomed to pain in our present circumstances, even as His grace sustains us. He has faithfully delivered us in the past, and His future deliverance is beyond imagination. Look up from the valley to the hope coming on the clouds. The pain of the present moment could be giving way to the reality of the hope of the age to come even as we write and read these words.
Steve
© 2011, Steve Taylor
"How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? How long shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart all the day? How long will my enemy be exalted over me?" (Psalm 13:1-2)
There is consolation in knowing that a man after God's own heart also questioned His silence. But for David, questions about silence never lead to despair. Present circumstances never blinded this man of God to past blessings or future hope. "But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, Because He has dealt bountifully with me." (Psalm 13:5-6)
Yahweh God had "dealt bountifully" with David in the past, and he knew in the future his heart would rejoice and that he would once again sing for joy. The "nasty now" did not negate yesterday's blessings or tomorrow's hope.
Nothing is more perplexing than present pain and God's silence. I've walked through plenty of valleys of emotional and spiritual pain when the silence was deafening. I've raised an angry fist at God (it pains me to admit that), and I've been face down on the floor in tears and anguish. And yet God was silent when I thought I most desperately needed His voice and touch. But, I've always eventually walked out of the valley and back into the sunshine of joy and communion with Him again. The valleys have always led to a level path and eventually a mountaintop experience.
Perhaps the hope and truth of the coming kingdom of God to earth ignites a fire and passion within me like nothing else because it represents the fullest and best experience of life. Dark valleys will be forever vanquished, along with all of life's most painful experiences. Surrounded by a glistening clean and pure environment, we will savor the most enriching relationship possible with one another, and with our Creator, and His Son. Prayer will no longer be a struggle. Our Father's thoughts will be clearly impressed upon our minds, and His voice will never cease to ring pleasingly in our ears.
We've grown accustomed to pain in our present circumstances, even as His grace sustains us. He has faithfully delivered us in the past, and His future deliverance is beyond imagination. Look up from the valley to the hope coming on the clouds. The pain of the present moment could be giving way to the reality of the hope of the age to come even as we write and read these words.
Steve
© 2011, Steve Taylor
posted by steve @ 8:30 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home