This morning, as I was in prayer, the Lord led me to “Psalm 88“…
I was actually in Psalm 69, when I felt like I heard Him say to go to “Psalm 88″…
And to be honest, I didn’t know right off the top of my head, what the topic of this psalm was.
I didn’t know, until I did some research on the background of this psalm, that it’s known to be one of the “saddest psalms in the bible.”
In my bible the title of Psalm 88 says,
“Prayer for Help in Despondency”
And yes, I also needed to look up the word, “despondency” to make sure I understood it clearly.
It means,
“a state of low spirits caused by a loss of hope or courage.“
Some similar words are:
discouragement, misery, gloom, melancholy, depression
And I asked God,
“God, why would You put this psalm in the bible? What is the purpose of this? What is it You are wanting us to see here? What is it that You want us to grasp and learn from this psalm? This psalm of agony…this psalm where we see this psalmist going through a dark season, and they’re crying out to You….Can You show me the hope in this psalm? Can You show me YOU in this psalm? Can You show me the lesson here? “
When we find ourselves in a season of “darkness”… it can be easy to believe that the darkness is really “closer to us than any other friend.”
But, Jesus is closer. He is a friend who will never leave.
He has never left, and He never will. ?
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”—Isaiah 41:10
“…And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” —Matthew 28:20
He is with us, whether we can sense Him in the moment, or not.
Just because we cannot sense His closeness, just because we cannot hear Him speak, just because we cannot see Him, just because He’s maybe not speaking anything to us at the moment—does not mean that He’s not with us.
He has not abandoned you. He’s doing something deep in you, and He’s going to be faithful to take you through the dark valley if you take His hand…
“The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” —Deuteronomy 31:8
Joshua 1:9 says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.“
“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.“—Deuteronomy 31:6
Zephaniah 3:17 says, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.”
I read a beautiful quote this morning that says,
“Do not be deceived by the darkness in your life, it is never greater than where your help comes from.”
ibelieve.com
When we begin to feel like we’re alone in the darkness, when we begin to feel overcome and overwhelmed…
Remember this, before the Lord:
“Behold, God is my helper;
The Lord is the sustainer of my soul.” —Psalm 54:4
“My soul, wait in silence for God only,
For my hope is from Him.”—Psalm 62:5
…And I realized that God was showing me the answer to my question of “God, why would You put this Psalm 88 into the bible?”…
He’s showing us that these kinds of seasons are part of our journey sometimes—Seasons of darkness, seasons of walking through the valley…
These kinds of seasons shape us, and are just as much a part of our story as the seasons when we’ve climbed to the top of the mountain.
And He doesn’t want us to feel like we need to cover up these “dark seasons” out of shame… there is no need to hide.
Through this Psalm, He’s showing us what to do when we find ourselves in these dark seasons.
And He’s showing us how desperately we need His presence.
“This Psalm reminds us that our dark seasons don’t serve to show us that God is absent but how desperately we need His presence.”
ibelieve.com
And He’s showing us this key…
“Lord, You are the God who saves me, day and night I cry out to You…”
…And it’s right there in verse 1 of this Psalm 88.
Sometimes God allows the dark seasons, and many times we won’t understand why we’re in that dark place…
And sometimes God allows “silence” so that He can “say something” to us in a deeper way than words can speak, in that particular situation…
Sometimes God allows us to go through dark seasons so that we’ll know… in a deeper way…just how much we desperately need His presence in our lives.
And everything He allows, He does it out of love, and because He wants us to walk in the good plans He has in store for us.
He’s always a good Father who is leading us in the way we should go.
Even if it means going through a “dark season” —a painful season.
Perhaps, a very necessary season.
Because He has hidden a purpose in the pain.
And He plans to use your story, for His glory.
So keep going. Know that no matter how dark the darkness is, no matter how silent the silence is, no matter how alone you feel…. He’s never left your side.
He’s just right there, loving You with a love that is far greater than you can comprehend.
And He is going to see you through. ☀️
…Let Him…. ??
Father God, for those who are going through a dark season right now, for those who are crying and crying out to You —or maybe they’ve even become so dull and hopeless they aren’t crying out to You any longer…. God, I’m crying out to You for “these ones”… maybe they feel like they’ve been abandoned, they’re feeling depressed, and discouraged and hopeless… God, will You infuse them with hope today? Will You fill them with joy this morning? Will You help them through the dark season they’ve found themselves in, that they will suddenly… find themselves…. in a place of closeness with You, communion with You…lead them into the place of experiencing JOY within Your presence like never before!
And until they make it into that place… will You soothe them with peace as they endure through this “dark season” they’ve suddenly found themselves in?
Thank You, Lord. In Jesus name, Amen. ☀️
“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”—Romans 15:13
-Heather ?