Ever feel abandoned by God? Ever feel like your prayers are bouncing off the ceiling? You are not alone. Read Psalm 10:1 (here @ Bible Gateway).
In reaction to this verse I jotted down several passages, Jeremiah 23:23 – 24 (here @ Bible Gateway), Psalm 139:7 (here @ Bible Gateway), and Hebrews 11:6 (here @ Bible Gateway).
This is the dilemma, on the one hand it seems, as the psalmist says, God is nowhere to be found in times of distress or trouble. On the other hand, He permeates the universe and beyond. I cannot, we cannot, escape Him and cannot hide from Him. So what is the deal with the feeling of abandonment?
It may be that it is the Lord’s desire that we learn to trust Him in the midst of the silence. That we rest in Him when He seems far off.
How?
How do I rest in Him, trust Him, when it seems as if He is not there? Here the psalmist prays. He shares with the Lord through prayer the feeling of abandonment. He codifies and shares with the Lord his doubts and fears. Perhaps Psalm 73:17 (here @ Bible Gateway) is a partial guide.
It seems that an approach might be:
Let me know what you have found.
In reaction to this verse I jotted down several passages, Jeremiah 23:23 – 24 (here @ Bible Gateway), Psalm 139:7 (here @ Bible Gateway), and Hebrews 11:6 (here @ Bible Gateway).
This is the dilemma, on the one hand it seems, as the psalmist says, God is nowhere to be found in times of distress or trouble. On the other hand, He permeates the universe and beyond. I cannot, we cannot, escape Him and cannot hide from Him. So what is the deal with the feeling of abandonment?
It may be that it is the Lord’s desire that we learn to trust Him in the midst of the silence. That we rest in Him when He seems far off.
How?
How do I rest in Him, trust Him, when it seems as if He is not there? Here the psalmist prays. He shares with the Lord through prayer the feeling of abandonment. He codifies and shares with the Lord his doubts and fears. Perhaps Psalm 73:17 (here @ Bible Gateway) is a partial guide.
It seems that an approach might be:
- Pray
- Acknowledge the problem. Tell God how you feel – all areas, frustrated, angry, hurt, etc.
- Ask why
- Remember what the Word says - Here is where passages that we have covered, or the Psalms may be of great benefit
- Review what He has done for you - Here is where a journal will be of benefit.
Let me know what you have found.
A part of the journey I am on is learning to be honest about how I feel, about a whole host of things big and small. It's no use trying to hide them; they don't seem to go away by themselves, and anyway God knows.
ReplyDeleteBut as you point out, that's only the beginning. Because we are human, and because we do have these feelings, God has given us hundreds (thousands? of promises of every kind to address any situation that God's people (and I) face. In Jerry Bridge's words, we must "...choose to lay hold of and cling to the promises of God despite that adversity that at times seeks to overwhelm..." us.
Yeah. I know what He wants, I can see the models, but it is a whole lot easier to write about it than it is to actually do it. I am so weak in this area it is embarrassing.
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