Ever feel beaten up? misunderstood? constantly corrected? wrong? wronged?
Haven’t we all?
There are times … years, seasons, days when we understand the Psalmist who wrote, Psalm 42. A Psalm most familiar for:
“as the deer pants for water, so my soul longs for you.” (v.1)
It is such a lovely verse … a hopeful verse, a verse stitched on pillows on printed on mugs, and displayed creatively on Pinterest.
But, Psalm 42 is not simply a beautiful and peaceful Psalm. It is also a heart-cry from the Psalmist, to the living God who brought blessing, in the past. It is a cry for ‘the good ‘ol days’ that have been replaced by sorrow, loneliness, mourning, oppression … a downcast spirit.
It is the pouring out of the sorrows of the Psalmist’s soul, and his reminders to his soul, to “put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
What a good example that, not matter what is going on around us, or in us, our soul can be satisfied by the hope of God … and even in those not so great days, we can praise him, our Savior and our God!
“I have lost my appetite
And a flood is welling up behind my eyes
So I eat the tears I cry
And if that were not enough
They know just the words to cut and tear and prod
When they ask me “Whereʼs your God?”
Why are you downcast, oh my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
I can remember when you showed your face to me
As a deer pants for water, so my soul thirsts for you
And when I survey Your splendor, You so faithfully renew
Like a bed of rest for my fainting flesh
When Iʼm looking at the ground
Itʼs an inbred feedback loop that drags me down
So itʼs time to lift my brow
And remember better days
When I loved to worship you and learn your ways
Singing sweetest songs of praise
Let my sighs give way to songs that sing about your faithfulness
Let my pain reveal your glory as my only real rest
Let my losses show me all I truly have is you
So when Iʼm drowning out at sea
And all your breakers and your waves crash down on me
Iʼll recall your safety scheme
Youʼre the one who made the waves
And your Son went out to suffer in my place
And to show me that Iʼm safe
Why am I down?
Why so disturbed?
I am satisfied in you”
Brian Eichelberger
The Sing Team
itsawonderfilledlife 