Tag Archives: sadness

Psalms 102-106; A Downcast Soul

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The other day I wrote about unspeakable joy that is ours through our relationship with God. I thank God for that gift that is ours through the precious blood of Jesus.

But today, with some things heavy on my heart, my soul is struggling to grasp the joy. I’m sitting here thanking God for that, actually. Because sometimes I read old posts of mine and think, do my words make this Christian walk seem too care-free? Do I give the impression that I have it all together, and I never struggle? That’s not even close to the truth. I don’t want anyone to think it is.

Honestly, sometimes the cares of my world do get me down. Sometimes it’s really hard to feel the joy with a downcast soul.

So today, feeling the unrest in my soul, I read these psalms and came away with two thoughts:

  1. Is what I’m feeling God’s hand of conviction ? Is this unrest a result of sin in my life? Is it because I have taken a step out of God’s will and into my own? Is this God’s way of getting me out of Egypt? Then I need to confront that sin, repent, and obey God’s leading even if the Red Sea is up ahead. God’s been faithful in the past. I can trust Him with today. There is joy in knowing that.
  2. Have I told God my concerns and then left them in His capable hands, knowing He hears and answers prayer? There are hundreds of examples in Scripture where God answered prayer. Abraham for Lot, Elijah and the prophets of Baal, Hezekiah, Hannah, Daniel, and on and on and on. There are examples in my own life of God’s faithfulness. Why should today be any different?

So I’m going to pray, repent, tell God what’s on my heart. Then I’m going to trust the God of the universe, the Great I Am, the One who loved me enough to die for me. I’m going to stop focusing on circumstances, and focus on my Heavenly Father. I’m going to praise Him, not because of what He can do for me, but because of who He is.

I am blessed. I have the Holy Spirit right here with me. I am forgiven. I am promised eternity with Jesus Himself. And He IS my joy.

Genesis 40 How’re You Doing?

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I didn’t get very far reading the familiar story of Joseph, the cupbearer, and the baker, when something convicted me. I don’t think I’ve ever really looked at this verse before.

When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. (vs 6, emphasis mine).

I know that it’s hard to read people some times. But I have to admit there have been times when I recognized a look of sorrow or worry or grief on a person and looked the other way. Or I say the obligatory “How’re you doing?” and expect to hear the accepted reply, “Fine” and leave it at that.

But Joseph paid attention to how the two men looked. Then, in verse 7:

So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so sad today?”

Now here’s what I get from this:

  1. Joseph recognized the dejected look on their faces.
  2. He asked them specifically about it.
  3. He listened to what they had to say.
  4. He spoke honestly with them.

Joseph didn’t just tell them what they wanted to hear. I wonder what would have happened if the baker had heard the warning, confessed his sin, and asked forgiveness. Joseph told him the truth. But the baker did nothing with it. And the baker died just like the dream had predicted.

God is speaking to me today about my relationship with others. Jesus told us to love one another. In fact, He said that was the second greatest commandment. And sometimes loving someone requires us to get involved in their lives, to be a sounding board, or to point out sin in their lives so they can confess it and receive God’s forgiveness.

And God is asking me to pay attention. If I recognize a look on someone’s face that tells me something is up, I need to stop and talk to them, listen to them, and be honest with them according to Scripture.

God, if You want me to relate to people like Joseph related to these two men, I’m going to need You. Give me the ability to read people, and the courage to ask them what’s on their minds if You prompt me to do that. Let me show Your love by truly caring about them. Help me to be an encourager if encouragement is needed. Help me to be a mirror if they need to take a good look at themselves. And help me always to point them to You, and only You.

 

May 23 – Joy in the Mourning

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2 Samuel 24, I Chronicles 21-22, Psalm 30

Sing praise to the Lord, you His godly ones, and give thanks to His holy name. For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning. (Psalm 30:4-5)

I don’t know what losses you have had in your lifetime. I have buried loved ones and it hurts. The thing about death is, it’s irreversible. Our loved ones are gone from this world and they are not coming back.

I’ve wept more than one night over the deaths of my parents and nephew. Weeping for a night followed by joy in the morning doesn’t necessarily describe my experience. Yet the psalmist says it like it’s a given.

As I realize joy is a gift God wants to give me, I am convicted. David goes on to say God is his helper, God turned David’s mourning into dancing, and God removed David’s sackcloth, the outward expression of David’s sadness, and instead God clothed David with gladness.

God did that. David didn’t have to manufacture some positive thoughts or light a candle. David only had to let God do His thing.

And so do I.

 

April 16 – Tears In A Bottle

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Psalms 56, 120, 140-141

Have you ever felt the need to shut the door to your room and just cry? (And men, I’m talking to you, too.) You can put up a brave face for only so long, and you realize you have arrived at your breaking point. You are alone. Not even your loved ones understand. You need to be by yourself and let it all out.

But you are never alone. There is Someone right there with you who loves you beyond what you know. And it’s at our lowest points that God wants to hold us, comfort and strengthen us.

I love what David said in Psalm 56:8:

You have taken account of my wanderings; put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in your book?

There isn’t a tear that falls from your eyes that God does not see or consider important. And he doesn’t forget a one of them.

David’s circumstances did not change. Saul still wanted him dead. The Philistines held him captive. But listen to David’s words in the midst of his pain:

When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You, in God whose word I praise, in God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?

If you are sad, or alone, or fearful, or all of the above, get alone with your Savior. Read the psalms. Let God gather your tears and replace them with Himself.

He loves you so much.

Hey! Don’t Take My Coat!

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I had a slow drain in the tub of a mobile home I lived in for a while.  No matter what I tried, it would clog up regularly. So I started a new routine. Every Saturday morning I’d pour baking soda into that drain, then dump a cup of vinegar on it and watch it go to work. It fizzed, and popped, and bubbled while the chemicals reacted to one another. Then, I would pour some boiling water into the drain and listen for it to flow freely.

Solomon tells us, in Proverbs 25:20 that singing a happy song to someone who is sad is like pouring vinegar over baking soda. The reaction is anything but soothing. Telling someone to “cheer up” or to “get over it” doesn’t help a person who is mourning or depressed. In fact, it can cause more grief. It would be like doing your happy dance at a funeral.

Sometimes people need to be sad. And if I am overtly expressing my happiness without considering their feelings, I’m just being mean. Solomon says it’s like taking the coat away from someone standing in the middle of a snowstorm.

As a middle school counselor I learned that sometimes I needed to allow the person sitting in front of me to feel the feelings. Sadness. Anger. Confusion. I had to admit that I didn’t have all the answers, that any tidbit of advice I might throw out there could make matters worse. I learned to ask, even of eleven-year-olds, what it is they thought they needed. Did they want to talk about it? Or did they just want to sit next to me and cry? There would, undoubtedly, come a time when I would direct that person to finding solutions. But sometimes that didn’t happen for quite some time. They needed to feel the feelings first.

Life is hard. Everyone goes through difficult times. Grief is personal. Depression can be a disease. You wouldn’t tell someone to just “get over” cancer, would you?

God is telling me today to choose my words, my attitude toward the people in my life who are facing hardships. Sometimes well intended words are just mean, like exposing someone to freezing weather, or pouring vinegar over baking soda. I want to be sensitive to what it is they are going through at the moment, set myself aside, and allow them to grieve, or rant, or question.

Lord, forgive me when I’m so taken with good things in my life that I walk over someone who is hurting. I don’t do it intentionally. I don’t want to make anyone feel worse than they already feel. Help me to notice the hurt in someone’s eyes or in the sound of their voice. Give me the words to say that will soothe and encourage. Or help me to keep my mouth shut and just be present. More than anything, Lord, I pray that they will be drawn to you as a result of my caring about their feelings.

Famine in the Land

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When the Bible talks about a famine in the land, I look for the spiritual application for the times when my relationship with God dries up. You know those times, right? When God seems so far away, when you have a longing that isn’t realized. Something is missing. You feel lost and alone, scared and sad.

I also think reading about famine in the Bible refers to the Church’s lack of ability to grow, to reach lost souls for Jesus.

So what can we learn about the dry days in our personal lives and in our churches? Joseph instructed the Egyptians in Genesis 47 to give him everything: their material possessions as well as their own bodies. They could hold nothing back. They laid it all at Joseph’s feet and in return, he gave them everything they needed. 

Now here’s something important to remember. The Egyptians didn’t receive what Joseph gave them and go home and turn on the TV. They went to work. They planted crops that would feed their families and produce seed to keep planting food to feed their families. They paid their taxes with the grain they planted, cultivated, and reaped.

God wants us to do the same. Whether it’s our own personal time of drought or an ineffective church, we are told to bring everything to God, lay it at his feet and leave it there. We cannot hold anything back.

Our material possessions? His. Our health? His. Our dreams, our fears, our jobs, our relationships? His. Our families and our bodies given to him with no strings attached.

God wants us to know that he will give us everything we need. He’ll feed us and revive us, give us strength and assurance. Then we need to get to work. God will bless us and care for us. But we need to be obedient.

He’s given us his Word. Do we read it? He’s promised to hear our prayers. Do we pray? He’s told us he will go with us and help us share the gospel. Do we talk about him to those who need him? He tells us to flee sin, to guard our hearts, to be separate from the world. How’s that going?

Jesus said he is the Bread of Life and the Living Water. May we allow him to feed us, to refresh us, and may we get out there and point others to the One who can satisfy their souls, too.

Father, I thank you for being everything we need every minute of every day. May we who are experiencing a kind of famine in our souls follow Joseph’s example and bring everything we have and are and lay them at your feet. May we trust you to provide what we need and may we enjoy the blessings that come from feeding on the Bread of Life and the Living Water. Then, Lord may we serve you with grateful hearts. May others find you because we are faithful.

October 26

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John 11:17-57; Mark 10:32-52; Matthew 20:17-34; Luke 18:31-43

Jesus wept. Our God shed tears over the death of his friend. He cried for Mary and Martha at the loss of their brother. 

As someone who still feels the pain of losing my dad and nephew last year there is a measure of comfort knowing my Savior knows how I feel. When he was sad he cried. And that makes me know my tears are ok.

I’m glad the Bible doesn’t tell us not to mourn. In fact Jesus told us that Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted. Scripture assures us that as Christians we don’t mourn like those who have no hope. Oh, we mourn. But within that mourning is the blessed hope, the assurance that one day we will be with Jesus and he will wipe every tear from our eyes.

I want to share a verse that has become very precious to my sister since her son’s death. It’s found in Psalm 143:8.

Let the mourning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go for unto you I lift my soul.

Jesus wept. And if you are mourning the loss of a loved one, the loss of your health, a job, or a relationship I pray that you will lift your soul, that you would put your trust in God and allow him to be your Comforter. He knows how you feel.

Dear Jesus, thank you for walking this earth, for experiencing life first hand, and knowing how we feel. I know you didn’t really do that for your benefit, but for ours. It is comforting to know that we can come to you with confidence, knowing you know first hand what we are experiencing. Thank you that we can trust you in our mourning. I pray for those reading this blog today who are sad. May they shed the tears that need to be shed and rest in your comfort. Give strength to meet the challenges of the day and may you be glorified even in our mourning.