Getting Gut-Level Honest With God
“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
Psalm 42:11 (NIV)
We got a new dog last summer because I just couldn’t resist, especially after my daughter Missy declared, “Mom, I already love him, and he already loves me!”
Bucky is the sweetest in our canine crew, but he was "Sir Poops-a-Lot"when he was a puppy! Since he’s Missy’s dog, we agreed that house-training would fall on her shoulders. She was enthusiastic … until she started consistently getting up with him at 6 a.m. every morning.
One morning, she refused to get up. This led to an unwanted deposit on a brand-new rug, which led to an animated mother-daughter discussion, which led to my normally kind and respectful kid pitching a fit and mumbling, “Sometimes I wish you weren’t my mom.”
Goodness gracious, I went through heck and back for years to adopt her from Haiti. I’ve given her my whole heart. After Jesus, she’s my first priority every minute of every day. So her petulant comment stung a smidge, but I knew she didn’t mean it. Which is exactly what she whispered through repentant tears during our long hug mere minutes after the meltdown.
By the pure grace of our Creator and Redeemer, Missy is gut-level honest. She doesn’t curate her emotions - because she’s learned she doesn’t need to present the shiniest version of herself to me. Her position in our little family is more secure than two pairs of Spanx.
The same is true for us and God. We don’t have to present our shiniest selves to Him. No matter what we’re feeling, we can be honest, just like the psalmist who wrote Psalm 42:11:
“Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
Psalm 42 concludes with a restorative proclamation - “I will yet praise him” - but what I appreciate the most about psalms of lament like this is that God allowed them to be included in the Bible in the first place! Instead of disowning disillusioned people, God allowed Scripture's 59 “sad psalms” to be His engraved invitation for us to be real with Him - to be honest when our hearts are heavy and not wear fake happy faces.
The biblical narrative proves over and over that His love for us is immutable - it doesn’t change. This means we can share everything with Him - our joy, tears, hopes, dreams, insecurities, anger and fears - all in absolute confidence that He will never leave us, forsake us or stop loving us.
Father, it’s difficult to understand how You can know me completely and still love me unconditionally. Thank You for sending me the comfort of the Holy Spirit, who consistently reminds me that I’ve been adopted into Your forever family and have the right to call You “Dad.” Today, I’m bringing my feelings to You. And I believe that I can linger in Your embrace. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
- Lisa Harper
Provided by "Proverbs 31 Ministries"
Jesus Wants You To Know
"Your life on earth is like a journey. It started the day you were born. Sometimes your journey takes you through wonderful places and happy times. Other times, you travel up rocky mountains of trouble or through dark forests of fear. At every turn, around every corner, I am there, showing you the way. Your job is simply to follow Me wherever I lead."
"The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.... Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me."
- Psalm 23:1, 4
- "Jesus Today for Kids" by Sarah Young
Obedience Step by Step
Now it came to pass after these things that
God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”
God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”
And he said, “Here I am.”
Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering
on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
Genesis 22:1-2
and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering
on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
Genesis 22:1-2
God tested Abraham, not to trip him and watch him fall, but
to deepen his capacity to obey God and thus to develop his character. Just as
fire refines ore to extract precious metals, God refines us through difficult
circumstances. When we are tested, we can complain, or we can try to see how
God is stretching us to develop our character.
Our difficulty is not that we don't know God's will. Our
discomfort comes from the fact that we do know His will, but we do not want to
do it!
When God first spoke to Abraham, His commands were
straightforward. “Go to a land I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). Then God led
Abraham through a number of tests over the years. Abraham learned patience as
he waited on God's promise of a son, which took twenty-five years to be
fulfilled. Abraham learned to trust God through battles with kings and through
the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The pinnacle of Abraham's walk of faith
was when God asked him to sacrifice the one thing that meant more to him than
anything else. Abraham's previous obedience indicated that he would have
quickly and decisively sacrificed anything else God asked of him, but was he
prepared for this? God did not ask Abraham to make such a significant sacrifice
at the beginning of their relationship. This came more than thirty years after
Abraham began walking with God.
As the Father progressively reveals His ways to you in your
Christian pilgrimage, you, like Abraham, will develop a deeper level of trust
in Him. When you first became a Christian, your Master's instructions were
probably fundamental, such as being baptized or changing your lifestyle. But as
you learn to trust Him more deeply, He will develop your character to match
bigger tests, and with the greater test will come a greater love for God and
knowledge of His ways. Are you ready for God's next revelation?