Dear Missionary Lady,
Greetings in the name of the One who understands and loves
us better than anyone else can.
“I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities” (Psalm 31:7).
There are two things God does in this verse. First, He considers our troubles. This word for trouble refers to depression, misery, or affliction. To consider is to look at something, in this case the affliction, with some level of evaluation. Because of what the rest of the verse says, it is apparent that God’s consideration includes how that trouble impacts us. He has His purposes, which are sometimes bigger than just us, but He never loses sight of us within the process.
The second thing God does is to know our soul in adversity. This is a tight spot, trouble, tribulation, or distress. God knows the trouble itself (as in the middle phrase of the verse), but He also knows how our soul is affected. He knows how our soul is being squeezed and stretched. He knows how our soul is responding in the midst of it all.
This final section of the verse is of great comfort to me. I am very well aware in the midst of trouble that there is a lot going on in my soul. Some is good, and some is bad, and some is simply the natural progress of dealing with the situation. There is the aspect of struggling with the pain and affliction, but there is also the side of reaching out to God in submission, worship, and desire. Our souls grow in the midst of trouble, and God knows all about that process, and specifically, our personal experience of that in our immediate context.
This comforts me, because I want someone to understand that very important part of me and to share in it with me. Even the closest person on earth to us cannot completely understand the complexities of what happens in our soul, no matter how much we try to explain. Some things are just beyond words. Besides that, what I try to express to someone today will probably have changed to some degree by tomorrow. God always has the current and complete understanding of what is happening in our souls.
I saved the first phrase of the verse for last. That’s because the two aspects we’ve already looked at are the reason, the “for” or “because.” I do what I do in the first part of the verse because of what God does in the second and third parts. See, it isn’t just about God considering and knowing. When God considers our affliction and when God knows how our soul is doing, He responds in a certain way. That response is “mercy” (or lovingkindness). Isn’t that like God? Because of His compassion, He has a gentle and supportive response to our trouble.
So what is our part? We are glad and rejoice in His mercy. God’s part is already finished. He has considered and has known, and it is implied that He has already characteristically responded with lovingkindness. Our soul sees His response, and we respond by rejoicing in that gracious and kind response.
Missionaries sometimes live in a fishbowl. That is, their lives, including their afflictions, are somewhat open to the public. It is sometimes necessary to share these situations so that family, friends, and supporting churches know how to pray and how to best give support. Unfortunately, it is sometimes the case that those “supporting” people evaluate the trouble and might even make judgments about the soul. Thus, someone who is not part of the situation first-hand and who doesn’t really know how your soul is responding will draw conclusions. (Not a good missionary, shouldn’t be struggling so much, must not be right with God, waste of our money, a disappointment, not the way I would handle that, a questionable decision, etc.)
Thankfully, others are more gracious and try to leave what they do not know with God and just continue to love and pray. Even more thankfully, there is the comfort found in that final phrase, that God knows all about your soul in the midst of trouble. God knows the things too deep for others to comprehend. God knows what your soul desires, even when you don’t achieve it consistently. God knows about the growth process.
The truth is that when others are saying the types of things recorded above, God is often saying things like, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” “Wait on me and I will strengthen your heart,” “I am pleased with your humble submission under My hand,” “You shall come forth as gold,” and other similar statements that express His approval.
May God’s words matter far more to us than the words of people. May His comfort and lovingkindness more than absorb the pain or misunderstanding. May the knowledge of His deeply personal knowledge of us be a comfort that carries us through the difficulties. God bless.
Love in Christ,
Peggy Holt
member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
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