Today’s devotional is based on Psalm 77. Let’s read the first few
verses:

1 I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me.
2 When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at night I stretched out untiring hands
and my soul refused to be comforted.
3 I remembered you, O God, and I groaned;
I mused, and my spirit grew faint.
Selah (which means “pause”)

This Psalm was clearly written by someone who was in a lot of distress!
He was so upset that he could barely sleep. He goes on:

4 You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak.
5 I thought about the former days, the years of long ago;
6 I remembered my songs in the night. My heart mused and my spirit
inquired:
7 "Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again?
8 Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for
all time?
9 Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his
compassion?"
Selah

In his frustration and suffering, the psalmist begins to question God.
How often have I done this? “God, where are You and what could You
possibly be thinking?” How appropriate that I’m writing this on Good
Friday? I imagine this is something like what the disciples were
thinking as they watched Jesus die on the cross. Here was the man who
was supposed to be their Messiah, and now He was dead! What on earth
could God be thinking? He just let the Savior die! Looking back at
the psalm, the psalmist does something pretty amazing at this point; he
chooses to turn his thoughts toward the truth of God:

10 Then I thought, "To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand
of the Most High."
11 I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your
miracles of long ago.
12 I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty
deeds.

13 Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God?
14 You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among
the peoples.
15 With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of
Jacob and Joseph.
Selah

And the psalm goes on (you can read the rest here if you’d like:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm77).

I’m not going to say too much about this. You can reflect on it
yourself. Let me just say that this lesson is one of the major things
God has been showing me lately. I am so short-sighted that generally,
all I can see is my own pain and suffering. During those times, it’s
so hard for me to believe the truth of God’s goodness and faithfulness.


I've just been so struck lately by how big God is and how, as God
spoke through the prophet Isaiah said, "For my thoughts are not your
thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD . "As the
heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts." God has a plan that is so much
bigger than we are. I often won't understand what He's doing because I
can't see the whole story and I don't know the end (kind of like the
disciples). So I just have to trust in Him, that He is GOOD in His
core, and He is faithful. I came across this verse the other day (it's
in one of the letter to Timothy): "When I am faithless, He is faithful,
for He can't disown (or deny) Himself." How true is that! To His
core, He is good and faithful. Who am I to question the way He chooses
to do things?

My prayer today is that you’d come to a greater understanding of God,
who He is, and the peace and joy He can give to each of us when we rest
in Him and trust in His plan.

"You know a dream is from God when you can let go of it, but it won't
let go of you." Darlene Zschech


www.brennakate.com
www.livejournal.com/~brennakate

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