Hope
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Do you ever talk to yourself when you are down? Have you ever had a day when depressed and struggling to find the motivation to get out of bed and start your day?
Maybe it happened to you in the middle of your day…things have been going badly and you are left with paralyzing depression. During such times have you been known to give yourself a pep talk? That is exactly what we have in this Psalm…a personal as well as a congregational pep talk.
This Psalm was used in worship and is called a “Lament Psalm.” A “lament” is a passionate expression of grief or sorrow. So the worshipers would insert their own personal struggle or grief when singing this song with the congregation of believers. And at times, they would express a shared grief using the Psalm as a unifying cry before God of their plight.
We have hymns in which we do the same thing don’t we. Perhaps we don’t sing them as we used to but through history the church has sung them. Maybe we need to occasionally pull them out of moth balls and sing them again.
Peace in the Valley — Thomas Dorsey wrote one such hymn in 1937. It was shortly before Hitler sent his war chariots into western Europe and the world was moving at breakneck speed toward war. Thomas was on a train going through southern Indiana on the way to Cincinnati… when he passed through a valley on that train. Horses, cows, and sheep were all grazing together in that little valley. A little brook was running through it… everything seemed so peaceful. It caused him to wonder what was wrong with mankind and he penned these words...
Oh well, I'm tired and so weary
But I must go alone
Till the Lord comes and calls
Calls me away, oh yes
Well the morning's so bright
And the lamp is alight
And the night, night is as black
As the sea, oh yes
There will be peace in the valley for me, some day
There will be peace in the valley for me, oh Lord I pray
There'll be no sadness, no sorrow
No trouble, trouble I see
There will be peace in the valley for me, for me
Life is tough and at times very, very hard. Live long enough and you will face a crisis for which you do not have the personal strength to endure…it is in those moments that we simply cry out to God.
The Psalmist cries out to God and feels forgotten. He cannot sense God’s presence with him. He feels utterly alone and helpless. He longs for God as the deer pants for the waters. But he can’t feel or hear God.
He wonders where He might go to find God. He has no appetite, his grief is too intense. His tears have been his food as he weeps day and night. Those who are enemies of God taunt him…all that talk of faith and where is He now???
He remembers a time when he went to church (house of God) and it was glorious. There were shouts of joy and thanksgiving. It was inspiring and wonderful. It was encouraging. He was ready to charge hell with a water pistol. God felt so close to Him…His power and strength so real.
But today, God seems so far away…the shouts of joy are silent. The thanksgiving has ceased. He is dead inside. He can’t feel anymore. He can’t explain it…he asks himself “Why so downcast my soul? Why am I so disturbed within me?”
We can’t always explain the pain and our downheartedness…it just seems such is a part of life sometimes. But whether there be an explanation or not the pain, depression and despair are real.
He tries to remember the good times and encourage himself…he tries to find hope for his present situation by considering all of the good times in the past. But the waves of grief, despair and pain just break over him like waves of the ocean…doing all they can to defeat his every attempt to pull himself up above the waves of grief in which he feels himself drowning.
But the memories encourage the Psalmist to trust…encourage Him to remember God is God, He is sovereign, He is the God of His life! Memory helps but is it enough! No, it cannot on its own pull us from the pit of despair and turn our heart around.
In the midst of his memories he begins to question God…and that is what we do in a situation like this isn’t it? We question…we question life, ourselves, others and even God! Why am I here, how did I get here and why does God seemingly just leave me where I am!?!
We dare not question God’s goodness! He is our rock! He is our strong base of support in life! But has God forgotten him? It seems so! Where is God?
Put Your Hope in God
Put Your Hope in God
As Rocky Balboa so famously said, “Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life.”
Depression, pain, hurt and questions are a normal part of life. In the midst of them we need hope! We need someone or something in which to find a reason to believe things are going to change for the better.
The Psalmist was in a bad way. He was feeling terrible grief to the point he couldn’t eat. He couldn’t feel God. His soul was numb with despair and depression. All he could think to do in this moment was what he penned in verses 5 and 11. These two verses are the refrain of the Psalm…and it was here that He tells us his answer…the one in whom he found his hope.
Hope — This is a funny word in Hebrew that can mean to wait or to put your expectation in something or someone. So we might think of it here like this, “Wait in God and expect good things to come.”
In affect what he is saying is this…God, I don’t feel anything, I’m hurting and cannot find a reason to continue living, so I will wait on you to make things better…and I am right to expect that you will.
This is where the past comes in handy. Simply lingering on the good times of past days was not enough to pull the Psalmist out of his depression. But the past showed him the character and power of His God. He knows good things will come from God because that is the character, nature and ability of the God whom he serves.
It feels like God has forgotten him right now. It feels like things are never going to change but He knows better. He knows the character of God…know His love, goodness, power and intentions toward him. He has hope! Expectations of good things to come because of who God is and his relationship with Him.
You and I have the same opportunity the next time life knocks us down. In those moments when we feel grief, depression or despair…just stop and put your hope in God. Remember who He is…His power, character, love and intentions toward you. We can trust Him and have expectations of good things to come. They always do…even from what is seemingly the worst of times...
Perhaps you can relate to this message from Kimberly Henderson of Proverbs 31 Ministries
I would have pulled Joseph out. Out of that pit. Out of that prison. Out of that pain. And I would have cheated nations out of the one God would use to deliver them from famine.
I would have pulled David out. Out of Saul’s spear-throwing presence. Out of the caves he hid away in. Out of the pain of rejection. And I would have cheated Israel out of a God-hearted king.
I would have pulled Esther out. Out of being snatched from her only family. Out of being placed in a position she never asked for. Out of the path of a vicious, power-hungry foe. And I would have cheated a people out of the woman God would use to save their very lives.
And I would have pulled Jesus off. Off of the cross. Off of the road that led to suffering and pain. Off of the path that would mean nakedness and beatings, nails and thorns. And I would have cheated the entire world out of a Savior. Out of salvation. Out of an eternity filled with no more suffering and no more pain.
And oh friend. I want to pull you out. I want to change your path. I want to stop your pain. But right now I know I would be wrong. I would be out of line. I would be cheating you and cheating the world out of so much good. Because God knows. He knows the good this pain will produce. He knows the beauty this hard will grow. He’s watching over you and keeping you even in the midst of this. And He’s promising you that you can trust Him. Even when it all feels like more than you can bear.
So instead of trying to pull you out, I’m lifting you up. I’m kneeling before the Father and I’m asking Him to give you strength. To give you hope. I’m asking Him to protect you and to move you when the time is right. I'm asking Him to help you stay prayerful and discerning. And I’m believing He’s going to use your life in powerful and beautiful ways. Ways that will leave your heart grateful and humbly thankful for this road you’ve been on.
Conclusion
Conclusion
God has not forgotten about us. There is purpose if you are still waiting for your good things to come.
Between the Old and New Testaments there was over 400 years of silence from God. No prophets and no word from Him. The world was lost in sin and a promise of a Savior to come but continued on in the despair of its lostness. But the whole world was being made ready…Rome was bringing a Pax Romana and the nations prepared for the ministry of Jesus which was to come…
Then came that night in Bethlehem when the angels sang, Mary cried in pain, Joseph shouted and Jesus, the Christ was born. Unto us a Savior was born and our hopes realized in the manger.
For 400 years we knew the power, love, character and intentions of God…but we cried out…where are you God? Where is our savior and salvation?
God knows where we are, the struggles we face, the despair we endure…and at just the right time…the good things He has in store for us will come. In the meantime…may our hope be found in Him and He be glorified in us.
God is preparing the good things to come. He really is…there is a reason we suffer as we do through the present time. He is reconciling the world to Himself and we are a part of that reconciliation. So we endure a sinful world, broken bodies, a cursed creation and men who cry out “where is your God” while we suffer for Him.
But someday He is coming again and we will see our hopes realized…we will see Him and every expectation of good will be realized in that first moment in which we see His face.
“We are His masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus for good works which He prepared in advance for us to do.”