Psalm 6: 2-3, 7 NLT
v2 Have compassion on me, Lord, for I am weak.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
v3 I am sick at heart.
How long, O Lord, until you restore me?
v7 My vision is blurred by grief;
my eyes are worn out because of all my enemies.
It doesn’t take many years on this planet to realize that life can be confusing. Questions fill our minds, tripping us up like logs would travellers walking through a misty swamp. “Where am I heading in life?” “Where is God?” “Why does this hurt so bad?” “Why did He allow this to happen to me?” Maybe well-intentioned friends come to us with some grocery store birthday card cliches . . . “Everything happens for a reason.” “God will work it out for good.” “The best is yet to come.” “God has good plans for you.” . . . all good, often true things—but not entirely helpful.
In her book, Alias Grace, Margaret Atwood puts much of our confusion into words . . .
“When you are in the middle of a story it isn’t a story at all, but only a confusion; a dark roaring, a blindness, a wreckage of shattered glass and splintered wood; like a house in a whirlwind, or else a boat crushed by the icebergs or swept over the rapids, and all aboard powerless to stop it. It’s only afterwards that it becomes anything like a story at all. When you are telling, to yourself or to someone else.”
I think many of us are finding ourselves in the middle of some perplexing, and challenging stories. All of us are in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic and its ramifications on our health, families, and livelihoods. Some of us are in the middle of family issues; others of us are in the middle of trying to find a job. Students are in the middle of online and in-person, knowing that school can be cancelled at any moment. We’re in the middle.
What do we do in these places that don’t seem to make any sense, or that definitely don’t offer any certainty? What do we do when we feel like, “. . . a boat crushed by the icebergs or swept over the rapids, and all aboard powerless to stop it . . .”?
In Psalm 6, David gives us an example:
2 Have compassion on me, Lord, for I am weak.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony.
3 I am sick at heart.
How long, O Lord, until you restore me?
First, David is honest with God, telling Him what’s really going on. Informed by our cultural “do-it-yourself” mindset, many of us feel that we can or should be self-sufficient. We should be able to handle anything that comes at us, and there’s something wrong with us if we can’t. Yet in this Psalm, David openly admits his situation to God, and he clearly says, “Lord, I need you.” David lifts up his complaint to God, wondering why He seems to be taking so long.
4 Return, O Lord, and rescue me.
Save me because of your unfailing love.
Second, David asks for help. Appealing to God’s character of love, he makes his request clear. He asks the Lord to rescue him, to save him. What do you need rescuing from today? What do you need God to save you from today?
8 Go away, all you who do evil,
for the Lord has heard my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord will answer my prayer.
Third, David trusts that God has heard him and will answer him. Despite the fact that his circumstances have not yet shifted, David chooses to believe that the Lord has heard his cry. Do you believe that God hears you, that He sees you? Do you believe that He hears your prayers, even in the most difficult of times? Not only does David trust that God has heard him, he trusts that God will answer him.
David’s example reminds us that we each have a choice; to allow circumstances to dictate our outlook on life, emotional states, and hope for the future, or to trust that God sees us, hears us, and will answer us in his timing.
Friends, we’re in the middle, and it seems like it’s going to be that way for a while. We can’t wish this story away, or fast forward it to the end—we are at sea and there’s no sign of land anywhere. Yet it is precisely in this place, in the middle, where God is meeting us right now, reminding us that we are not alone, that His rescue is on the way, and here even now.
What will you do in the middle?
HOW?
This week, give David’s process of prayer in Psalm 6 a try:
Be honest with God. Tell him about what’s going on, about your need for him. Don’t leave out the details and the messy parts—he can handle it.
Ask God for help. Ask him for what you need, for deliverance, for strength. He’s your loving Father; remember that he listens intently to you.
Even if you don’t feel it, or none of your circumstances have changed yet, take a step of faith and express your confidence in who God is. Thank him for his promises, and praise him for his character of love. If you can’t think of anything to say, pray David’s prayer in Psalm 6.
Helpful tips
Set a timer on your phone, put it on “Do not disturb,” and place it in a place that’s out of your sight. Remember, even five concentrated minutes is often more valuable than a half hour of distracted prayer.
Sit in silence for a few minutes before you start to talk to God. Ask him for his Holy Spirit, and be aware of his presence in the room with you.
Share your experience with a trusted friend.
On the journey,
-Ian
If you’re not sure where to start, or you would like to pray or talk with someone, feel free to email me at ianreyes567@gmail.com, or another member of the Canyon Creek Project team at hello@canyoncreekproject.com.