Hard Questions for God

How does the Psalmist get away with such strong questions of God? Would you dare be so honest with God? Keep Reading...

READ
Psalm 13 - How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me.

REFLECT
Have you ever sounded like David the Psalmist? Have you yelled out to God with your "Why?" and "How come?" Perhaps, you have not dared actually mouth these words. But, your heart has probably voiced these words many times.

How does the Psalmist get away with such strong questions of God? When you have felt these questions rise up, you have probably tried to push them down... thinking that God would not want to hear it. In fact, the opposite is true.

God welcomes your honesty. He knows what you're thinking. But, he wants you to move from just thinking questions to voicing questions directly to him. You can tell him that you feel forgotten. Tell him how you wrestle with confusion. The questions may not sound pretty. That's ok. God desires your raw honesty.

Raw honesty is vulnerable not accusational. It reveals how you truly feel, but stops short of blaming God for the suffering. You will notice how David ends this Psalm with a declaration of trust in God's character. Even though he feels rotten, he consciously grabs onto God's strong love. David rejoices and sings about God, even in the midst of his confusion and suffering.

An intimate relationship with God involves honest (and sometimes messy) questions, as well as honest worship. You have not been truly honest until you have declared who God is in the midst of your suffering.

RESPOND
Take a moment to tell God exactly how you feel right now. You might be feeling great, maybe average or maybe awful. Go on - tell him. He can handle it. Now continue your honesty by declaring the truth of who he is. Begin to rejoice (speak out loud, sing, jump, raise your hands) in the wonderful love of God.