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But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. Psalm 13:5
Interesting little word, the word ‘but’. It can be used to signify a change in direction: “I was going to go to the ball game BUT it rained so I went shopping instead.
It can be used to describe actions that seem contrary, “He wanted to speak up, BUT he was afraid”.
But can be used to signify actions that may seem heroic and strong, “He could have died BUT he went in after the young boy anyway.”
But can describe an attitude of heart, of commitment and of being resigned to a particular action, thought or emotion as well.
In Psalm 13 David vividly expresses the emotions of a man who is stressed out, under attack and questioning God. When will this end? When will you deliver me? When will my enemies be defeated? When will I finally get a decent night’s sleep? When will I finally have enough money at the end of the month? When will my son/daughter get their life straightened out? When…?
In the midst of the storm, when there really is no indication of relief, when the noise of rockets and bombs is still heard, and defeat seems imminent, David comes to a decision.
“But I trust in your unfailing love…”.
Ultimately, David’s trust in God was based on the favor God bestowed on him spiritually even though it wasn’t recognizable in his physical circumstances. The things that were most troubling to him were superficial regardless of the struggle they brought into his life. None of them would ever take away the favor God bestowed on him. The bestowing of God’s favor has never guaranteed we would be without turmoil, in fact, the opposite is true.
As he contemplated his situation, David realized that none of his trouble took away the friendship he had with God. True friendship is shown to be strongest in the midst of the battle because a true friend will fight for you when he can, but stand by you regardless of the situation.
In the midst of enemy attack, David remembered that while the enemy could take away everything he held dear, including his life, the enemy would never be able to steal the promises God had for him. Promises of salvation, grace, mercy and eternal love. Those were things the Psalmist could rely in regardless of circumstance.
Regardless of what you are in the midst of today, remember these two things. You will go through trying times in which there seems no way out. Those times may be at the hands of others or the result of your own decisions. Whatever those struggles are, you can come boldly to the throne of grace and talk to your Father about the situation.
Secondly, as the Psalmist says in the midst of his struggle, you can trust your loving Heavenly Father to deliver you in his time. Nothing can take you from his arms.
PRAYER: Lord as the storm rages around me, thank you that I can stand firm in the fact that your love, your friendship; your promises will never be taken from me. Help me to rest in these promises as I endure the pain. Amen.
Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Hebrews 10:23 (NLT)
Ever been in a situation where people have been sharing about how God is working in their lives and wondered if he forgot about you?
You are struggling with finances and praying and working hard and doing all the ‘right things’ to make things work. You feel like you are trusting God for answers but none come.
Or you are in the midst of a very tense issue with some relationship and some guy stands up to share how they’ve had this conflict that has been eating them up, but that God has restored this relationship and they are praising him for intervening.
Or you are struggling with an addiction. This addiction has plagued you for years. You’ve prayed. You’ve sought counsel. You’ve asked for help from friends. You’ve done everything you can think of to free yourself of this problem and it still controls you to the point where you have considered just giving up on the whole ‘Christianity thing’ because it’s not working for you.
Or maybe you are thinking that if you hear just one more person say: “You just have to have faith. I just decided one day to give all my problems to God and he has blessed me tremendously” that you just may throw up.
These are just a few examples. What’s your story? If God were to appear to you as some genie in a bottle and ask you for your biggest desire, what would you ask him for?
In our most honest moments we’ve all had experiences when these struggles rear their ugly heads. You may be going through one right now. You believe in the God of Genesis. You trust Jesus fully and believe he has all things in his control. Yet there are areas in your life that just long for a touch, a message from God that says “I’m here. I’ll do what I’ve told you I’ll do.”
I have some bad news for you and some good news for you. First the bad news. There is no easy button in life. There’s no 12-step plan for seeing God work. There are things you can do to open yourself to his power, such as prayer, reading his word and being involved with other believers. But we serve a God that is a rebel at heart. God promises to be with us always, but he doesn’t promise to do things the same way for every person.
The good news is that he will fulfill his promises in his time and his time is always perfect. Imagine how the two on the road to Emmaus felt as they mourned the loss of Jesus. Full of confusion, fear and grief they thought everything was over…until Jesus showed up! The Bible is full of examples of Godly people doing the right things but not seeing God’s working for a long time.
When God seems to have forgotten us we need to hold on tightly for the ride knowing that in his time he will make himself known in real and marvelous ways. As the writer to the Hebrews says, God can be trusted to fulfill each of his promise.
PRAYER: Father God. I hear how you are working in other people and wonder why I can’t see you working in my life. If there is something within me I need to change, search my heart and reveal it to me. If, on the other hand I just need patience, give me strength to trust your promises. In Jesus name, Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 