O LORD, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day?
How long will my enemy have the upper hand?
Turn and answer me, O LORD my God! Restore the light to my eyes, or I will die.
Don't let my enemies gloat, saying, "We have defeated him!" Don't let them rejoice at my downfall.
But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the LORD because he has been so good to me. Psalm 13 (NLT)
I love these words of David. He, who God says is “a man after My own heart” understood what it meant to be deeply sad in his soul.
He felt forgotten. He felt that God no longer saw him. He thought he might die if God didn’t answer.
I get it. I’ve been there. I struggle often with a deep sadness of the soul. But, like David, I refuse to stay there.
The first thing David does is pray. He prays honestly, pouring out exactly how he feels He asks God to defeat his enemy. Davide understands that depression, or a deep sadness of the soul, is an enemy that must be battled. We must pray to God for help in battling this enemy.
Then he reminds himself of the truth. He chooses to rejoice because God will rescue him. He can still sing in the sadness because God has been good. God is good!
David relies on the truth he already has learned about God. God can be trusted to rescue him even if in the moment he feels forgotten.
David has learned that no matter what life may look like today God can be trusted to show His unfailing love and goodness in the midst of it all.
David relies on truth not emotions. Sometimes that is hard because emotions seem real, but we must take our feelings to God and allow Him to speak truth into them. May he be our example in those moments we might feel forgotten and alone.
Thank you, God, for this reminder today. I can trust in Your goodness and unfailing love. Help me to focus on Your truth when the lies of the enemy come. Amen
When we Feel Forgotten, Trust in Him
