“Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; our God is merciful. The Lord preserves the simple; when I was brought low, he saved me. Return, O my soul, to your rest; for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling; I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living. I believed, even when I spoke: ‘I am greatly afflicted’; O Lord, I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant. You have loosed my bonds. I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the Lord, in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!” (v5-10,16-19)
Can I get a witness?
Sometimes I wonder why God allows people to go through such difficult times – the trials and tribulations of life can be overwhelming. In the midst of great struggle, we generally have three options: try to face the struggle on our own strength, give up and throw in the towel, or fully rely on God while becoming stronger and more rooted in our faith.
From my own personal experience, I’d say I’ve done all three of those approaches, in the order listed – try it on my own, fail, want to give up (or actually do give up), and then as a last resort ask God for help. Why can’t I just skip the first two steps? Maybe one day I’ll learn…
The psalmist reminds me that even when “I am greatly afflicted” I can maintain my faith and hope in the Lord, trusting the He will “deliver my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling”.
The whole time I was reading this Psalm, a lyric from “Witness” by Jordan Feliz kept running through my mind: “I was blinded, you gave me eyes to see. I was going under, you reached out to me. No, there’s nothing you won’t do, to pick me up and pull me through – every hour, eight days a week. So much love, so much grace, c’mon now (can I get a witness?)” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgD92xLlNGs
Once we’re through a difficult trial, we can be a greater witness for God’s love, grace and mercy. We will have a powerful, personal story of how God carried us when we needed Him the most. The journey wasn’t easy, but God allowed it so He could be glorified through our eye witness account. My challenge for us today is not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (Rom 1:16).
Father God, thank you for being with us through the midst of hardship. We realize that even though it may take us a while, when we do surrender to Your power and will, You carry us through the darkest of times. Father, thank you for being our deliverer and redeemer. Please teach us to fully rely on You at all times, so when the trials come we can easily cling to you without first having to fail on our own strength. Please open our eyes and mouths so we may be a witness for You, telling the whole world of Your love, grace and mercy, so everyone may believe in Your power for salvation. Amen.
~ Conqueror in Training