A Life In Christ
Today my Bible reading took me to Psalm 44. This Psalm is a little different from most as it discusses defeat in battle. I believe that in the writers mind the defeat is due to the Lord not fighting for them. They are not trusting in their swords, they are trusting and waiting for God to bring His strength.
The writer appears very confused; he feels as though they are following God, giving Him praise and yet God does not seem to hear. He appears far off, or as if He is punishing them. The writer is sure that their hearts are in the right place. The writer is crying out “Why?” (As I have, many times)
“Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.”
Psalm 44:22
Because he follows this by saying,
“Awake, why sleepest thou O Lord?”
Psalm 44:23
I feel that verse 22 answered his questions, yet he doesn’t appear to know that it has been answered.
Asking Why God When in Life is Hard
I completely relate to this Psalm. I have often felt as though God was not there, I cry out to Him and no answer comes. It is a very lonely place to be when you feel like even God has left you. And all you have are prayers filled with tears. However, in this Psalm I don’t believe that God had abandoned His people. I am quite sure that He was very much with them and even though He was not answering as they wanted.
The key term here is “as they wanted.” We often miss what God does or says because it is not what we wanted or expected. STOP EXPECTING! God is able to do abundantly more than you could ever expect.
Nothing in This Life Can Separate Us From God
He was giving them all that they needed to get through the current situation. Even if it meant being with them as they died.
Paul quotes Psalm 44:22 in
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecutions, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”
Romans 8:35-37
In this passage, it sounds wonderful, powerful, and perfect. Although, the same truth sits in the middle, “for thy sake we are killed all the day long.” The Christian life is not easy. It is not simple. It is often dangerous, even deadly, but most of all it is TRUTH. God is faithful, He will never leave us nor forsake us. Yes, we will suffer for Him, each of our sufferings will be different, no two alike.
Fighting Battles
A popular phrase lately is, “Be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle.” I find this to be very true. I have often felt like, ‘if only they knew what my week has been like.’ We all (Christians included) are fighting some battle. The human life is not easy it is filled with decay, sin, suffering, and death. At least we have the assurance of Christ, God is with us. He hears our cries. Yes, even when we don’t feel, see, or hear Him. We can know that He is with us, and that nothing can separate us. He is faithful and He will give us all that we need to get through.
God’s Provision
If I am to be honest I have often felt as if He wasn’t giving me enough. And then when I look back I can see that He gave me just enough. Enough to grow, to learn, and to draw me into a closer relationship with Him. I believe there are many reasons for our life here on Earth. One reason is that we develop a closer, more personal relationship with Him.
God’s Grace
When I was about 6, my big thing was, “Is it fair?” I just knew from the depths of my core that life should be fair, so you can imagine my utter shock when my mother told me, “life is not fair!” I felt as though I had been slapped across the face. It was a very painful realization. As I grew I realized how right she was, much to my dismay. As I would have loved to prove her wrong, especially on this point. The truth is that this life is not fair, and let’s go a step farther, God’s grace is not “fair”. How could a “fair” god forgive sins, and offer His righteousness in place of our filth.
“And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.” –
Zechariah 3:4
In the eyes of this world, the grace of God is not “fair.” Maybe the hard life of a Christian is not “fair” in this worlds eyes either. However, I am grateful for the unfair grace of God, otherwise I would be lost in sin forever. I also know that there are many things that we will not understand as long as we are in this world. They will be made clear as the Lord Jesus holds us in His arms as we pass from this life.
What I do know is that
Life is hard; God is good!
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9
Love this! Things with God don’t always seem fair but He is Just. Righteousness and Justice are the foundation of His throne. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!! As we mature in our walk we see more and more just how just he is, and just how far the world is from where it started/should be. I am so glad you enjoyed it Thank you!