I stood on the deck looking out at the shadows of the trees. The stars glimmered overhead, the crickets sang, the night mist brushed my face. Usually, it would be a peaceful moment of reflection at the end of the day. Last night, frustration and disappointment so overwhelmed me that I wondered where God was. My only prayer was a complaint! “Where are You, Lord? What do you want from me?” As I lay my head down later to sleep, this thought brought a measure of comfort. I am not secured by my grip on His hand, but rather by His grasp of my hand. In the Scripture, I read: "I realized that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside. … Yet I still belong to You; You hold my right hand." (Psalm 73:21, 23, NLT)
When John, the disciple that Jesus loved, was an old man, he was sent to exile on the rocky island called Patmos. Do you think he wondered if God had forsaken him? There he was in a cave, alone. But, the old disciple got up on the Lord’s Day and the Bible says, he was ‘in the Spirit.’ He was given the visions of the Revelation, wild and wonderful pictures of God’s ultimate triumph over Evil! Jesus came to John there and we read this line from the first chapter. "When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last." (Revelation 1:17, NIV) His submission in heart and mind, his willingness to let God be God, allowed him to experience the touch of the hand of Jesus. I wonder if he would have received the same glorious visions if he had stood on that rocky shore screaming at the heavens about the injustice of it all? Could he have known the comfort of the touch of the Lord if he wrapped himself in a stinking blanket of bitterness stained with his disappointment with God? I think not!
I find no place in the Bible that tells me that I cannot weep, that a man of faith will live above disappointment. When those days come when tomorrow is hidden by the fog of frustration, when the ache in our soul is too deep to express beyond a groan, we have two choices. We can become embittered or we can become broken. A bitter man blames God and cuts himself off from the touch of the Father’s hand. A broken man kneels in humble worship. There God finds and renews him. David’s song reminds us that broken hearts are open to God’s healing. "I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don’t for a moment escape God’s notice." (Psalm 51:17, The Message)
Are you feeling the pressures of life today? Does it seem that God has turned away?
Choose to wait, humbly, for Him. When tempted by bitterness, reject it. Instead, let your heart break. And, my prayer is that you will feel the tender, comforting touch of the hand of your Father.
_____________________
Often you've wondered why
Tears come into your eyes,
And burdens seem to be
Much more than you can stand.
But God is standing near
He sees your falling tears.
Tears are a language God understands.
God sees the tears
Of a broken hearted soul.
He sees your tears
And hears them when they fall.
God weeps along with man
And takes Him by the hand,
Tears are a language
God understands.
Tears Are A Language
Jensen, Gordon
© 1971 Jensen Music (Admin. by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc., 741 Coolsprings Blvd., Franklin TN 37067)
CCLI License No. 810055
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