In Times Like These We Need An Anchor
In my years as a pastor, I often share Psalm 23 as a Psalm of comfort to families who have loved ones in the hospital or are grieving the loss of a loved one in a funeral. Many are familiar with this Psalm and may have noticed how this Psalm combines two very different settings. The Psalm begins with the reassuring words, ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.’ In this first scene, the psalmist paints a picture of life with ‘green pastures’ and ‘quiet waters’. The encouragement of God restoring our soul and leading us in ‘paths of righteousness’ is offered. Philip Yancey points out as the psalmist describes this calm and idyllic scene, he presents God as seemingly distant / impersonal, describing God in the third person, ‘He’. “He makes me lie down” and “He guides me” and “He leads me”. In the second scene of Psalm 23, the picture changes to one of struggle and hardship and the psalmist describes God in the more personal second person, ‘You’. The psalmist describes needing to go through the ‘valley of the shadow of death’ and being in the ‘presence of my enemies’. With both the enemies and the evil still present, the psalmist declares, ‘I fear no evil for You are with me.’ In the second scene of trouble and hardship, God has come close. That’s what we can count on in times like these. When the picture of life changes to one of hardship and struggle, God comes close to meet us in our struggle.
In addition, it is in the struggle and hardship where we often find God. Not only does God come close in times of trouble, but troubled times has the effect of awakening us out of our sense of self-sufficiency and pulls us toward the Divine. It’s like when our troubles come on us we finally see we are not in control of our lives and never were. I read somewhere,
“John Ortberg once helped conduct a survey on spiritual formation that asked thousands of people when they grew most spiritually and what contributed to their growth. The number one contributor surprised him. It was not pastoral teaching, or small group fellowship, or worship services, or books of theology – rather, they mentioned suffering. ‘People said they grew more during seasons of loss, pain, and crisis than they did at any other time.’”
Evidently, we discover the hidden value of suffering only by suffering. Although suffering wasn’t part of God’s original plan for us, He uses the brokenness in this world for His purposes which are always good. Often the best good purpose God brings in suffering is in the spiritual formation that grows in our lives from it.
I think of Job and the lousy days he went through. Loss of family, loss of wealth, loss of health. Job had a period of trouble that makes the trials of coronavirus look puny. Job’s three friends accuse Job of sin and suggest Job was getting what he deserved. For his part Job was a good and righteous man and couldn’t believe how life had turned toward the worse. He complained to God about his lousy life. He ranted and raved about this and that. He cursed the day he was born. He accused God of injustice. He was filled with self-pity. When God finally shows up, He doesn’t explain. He explodes. God doesn’t reveal His grand design. He reveals Himself. Job is humbled and worships.
At the end of the book of Job, even in all Job’s ranting and raving, our Lord gave these words,
“He said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” (Job 42:7)
The Lord didn’t appreciate the three friends trying to explain why bad things happen to good people. Instead, the Lord embraced Job and all his ranting and raving. Why? In all his ranting – he did it before God. Throughout the entire book, Job was always trying to get to God. He was looking up and trying to make sense of God’s silence and His permission in all these bad things. He never stopped pushing toward God.
This is a very practical lesson for us. With all the lousy stuff coming from the coronavirus – call it what it is and shout it out to God. Tell Him of your pain and struggle. But whatever you do, don’t cut God out. Stick with Him. Pray to Him. Go after Him (find Him in the Bible). See Him as our Great and Awesome God who doesn’t explain but explodes … who doesn’t reveal His grand design, but reveals Himself. Humble yourself before Him and worship.
Pastor Mark
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