01182020 Already Answered

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of our patient God. If He were not longsuffering, who could stand? Yet He knows our human frailty and struggles, and He bears long with us and continually reassures us.

I love the psalms of Asaph. He is so honestly and vulnerably human; he reveals the depths of his struggles and then talks himself back to truth. Psalm 77 is one of those encounters. Asaph was in a difficult time. He talks about "the day of my trouble" (v. 2), "my sore ran in the night, and ceased not" (v. 2), "my soul refused to be comforted" (v. 2), "my spirit was overwhelmed" (v. 3), "I am so troubled that I cannot speak" (v. 4), and inability to sleep (v. 4).

In this time of intense struggle, Asaph's mind was not idle. He was thinking, specifically about the past and how things used to be (v. 5). His soul was not idle. He was searching his inner depths, diligently seeking for answers (v. 6).

In this intense time of asking and searching, Asaph asked some hard questions. "Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be favourable no more? Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies?" (vs. 7-9).

Wow. It is a rare Christian who has never been in a similar spot. When things get very rough, and when they continue that way for an extended time, we find ourselves asking those deep and dark questions. In essence, has God abandoned me? Won't He ever come back and help me again?

The questions are tied to the character of God: His mercy, His promises, His graciousness, His tender mercies. In order for God to abandon His children, His character would have to change. Is that possible? Emphatically, no. God does not change and cannot change. He continues to be merciful, gracious, and tender. He continues to keep His promises.

What, then, is the answer when we can't see God's character with our observations? We must, like Asaph, see God's character through the recorded history of His actions. In vs. 10-12, Asaph determines three times to remember ("the years of the right hand of the most High," "the works of the LORD," "thy wonders of old"); he also determines to meditate on God's works and to talk of His doings.

This determination starts an extended section in which Asaph remembers who God really is. He recalls the recorded ways of history in which God had shown His character. While I'm sure Asaph could have remembered God's past work in his own life, he looked back further. God was not just Asaph's God; God is bigger than that. So Asaph looked at the bigger picture of God.

There is no one as great as God (v. 13). He does wonders (v. 14). He has shown His strength to His people (v. 14). He redeemed Israel (v. 15). He exercised control over the waters (v. 16). He controlled the weather (v. 17). His power in nature made the earth tremble (v. 18). He controls the oceans in unfathomable ways (v. 19). He led Israel out of captivity (v. 20).

As Asaph considered these facts of reality and history, his questions were answered. Obviously, God is faithful to His people. Obviously, God works mightily on their behalf. God does show mercy. He does keep His promises. He is gracious, and He does show His tender mercies. The history of Israel and Israel's deliverance from Egypt, in particular, reveal all these things.

If God was that way for Israel, and if God doesn't change, then Asaph's conclusion (although he does not state it overtly) has to be that God is still that way for him. And our conclusion has to be the same. God has not changed. There may be dark spells in our lives, times when the blessing of God is hidden from our eyes, but He is the same God. We can trust Him and wait on Him. We can have confidence that He is working and will continue to work.

When we are in times of deep trouble and distress, we (like Asaph) ask questions that are already effectively answered. Our questions of doubt cannot be. If we would think and remember, which is what Asaph did, we would know that. In the depths of our hearts, we know the truth. We just have to remind ourselves and reattach ourselves to the reliable anchors of that unshakeable foundation.

God won't forget and He won't fail. He can't. No matter what is happening in your life and ministry, may you remember and cling to that truth. God bless you, my friends.

Love in Christ,
Peggy Holt
member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
www.pressingontohigherground.blogspot.com