Praise in the Wilderness
Several weeks back (or is it months now, it seems so long), the Lord allowed some big events to come into my life and begin a “reshaping” of myself, both physically and spiritually. I can see now this was absolutely necessary.
There have been so many passages of Scripture that have effectively jumped off the page right at me, but Psalm 13 hit me like a ton of bricks recently. I’ve had this chapter memorized for years, but it was like new all over again.
I’ve struggled with this current “season” of wilderness for a while now, and have spent so many hours in Scripture and in prayer, crying out to God in worship, day and night. After several doctor visits, and active biblical counseling (real Bible based, not the mumbo jumbo of the world), things are improving and I’ve learned a lot through this, but the number one thing that has thematically stood out and is required of me, is my worship and praise through thanksgiving of my Heavenly Father.
In this particular Psalm, David shows his trials and his depression as well. But he incredibly ends all his thoughts of despair with the incredible gift of rejoicing in what God has already given him and blessed him with.
He says in verse 5 and 6 of this Psalm:
“But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.”
Wow! To find the joy in the trial is such an incredible lightening of the burden. A separate devotional that I read recently was talking about the children of Israel and their journey in the wilderness. They wandered for 40 years, because they kept complaining!
And the idea is that we can choose how we want to react to these seasons. If we choose to grumble and complain, the season lasts longer, but if we choose to have a heart of thanksgiving and praise God for His blessings, the season shortens. Now this isn’t saying that just say praises and it will end soon, or complain and God will tack on some extra time. No, that’s not the point of this.
The point is that through our proper choice and right attitude, we can restore and sweeten our fellowship with God, and whether or not it actually shortens the trial (we’ll never know), it brings about the change and restoration quicker within us.
The second biggest theme in my life recently, has been faith. In the midst of all this happening, I had a new responsibility to coach a 2nd grade basketball team. And would you want to guess what the devotion theme has been for every practice and game? If you guessed “faith” you’d be correct!
To trust God sounds so easy. But when you are in the middle of the wilderness, it becomes, shall we say, more “complicated”. In reality, it’s essentially not that much harder, but we begin to look around and our focus wanders to so many different things, and this is what makes it seem so much harder.
It’s amazing how God designed and fashioned us with such a complex body, connected to emotions, and our soul; and it’s these connections that can create wonderful synergy or just the opposite. There’s so many verses in Scripture that talk about our minds and how to handle our worry, fears, and trials, that I can’t put them all in this brief article, but I’ve been adding them to my verse list that I review daily, and it keeps getting longer.
God desires fellowship with his children, as I do being a father to my kids. He wants us to desire this fellowship with Him as well, but sometimes we don’t want it as much and we fill our time with other things. We have the knowledge of all the promises in Scripture, but our application of them is lacking.
On top of all these issues pressed upon me through this, is others. To listen and pray for others’ needs. Just like the need to look outward toward God and His fellowship, looking outward to give attention to others’ needs is important. Especially during these times, when the focus needs to be outward, I may not have the capacity to give money or physically be present for someone, but I can pour out in prayer to God for them. Over and over.
My prayer is for God to give me His wisdom to apply this knowledge. To create habits that propel me to my knees often, that draw me into His presence in such a way that I cannot do anything else to fulfill His purpose; and to have Him, as my Heavenly Father, walk with me in life and give me clear purpose and direction as I seek to glorify Him.