Look to God!
[Psalm 42]
There is a story about Satan’s auction. Satan gathered consumers to sell things like worry, fear, desire, sorrow, and pride. On one side of the display shelf, there was an item with an old, faded label saying "Not for Sale." Someone asked Satan why this item was not for sale. Satan replied, "The other items are well-stocked, but this one is the most valuable among everything I have. Without this item, I cannot work deeply in people’s hearts. This item is called 'discouragement.'" (Internet)
Indeed, this weapon of Satan, "discouragement," can be fatal to our spiritual life. What is discouragement? Discouragement is a state where one loses courage, hope, and confidence (Kang Junmin). In other words, discouragement is a state of being defeated. Sometimes, discouragement is expressed as "despair," which means that hope has fallen away. The term "dejection" is also used instead of discouragement. Dejection refers to a state where one loses courage, or in other words, it’s when one loses self-confidence. Discouragement becomes the enemy of those who are pursuing their dreams because of a heart that is ready to give up.
As we enter the new year, I personally think about the beloved ones around me who are in situations where it is easy to fall into discouragement, dejection, and despair. As we welcome the new year, they are suffering from various things that bring them despair, and they cannot see the vision for a truly hopeful year. So, what should we do when we face such challenges? Even when we face obstacles, we, as believers, should not be discouraged. The reason is that we know and believe that there is a blessing in those challenges. So, what is the blessing in those challenges? Dr. Park Yun-seon describes four blessings:
(1) The blessing of obstacles is that we receive character training through them.
Through obstacles, we become more and more like the character of Jesus.
(2) The blessing of obstacles is that we are trained to be thankful in the midst of them.
Anyone can be thankful in situations where everything is going well. Of course, people who are habitually complaining will still complain even in such situations. But we, as believers, are the ones who can give thanks even in very difficult situations where it seems impossible to be thankful. No matter how many conditions there are that seem to prevent us from being thankful, when we think about the grace of salvation we received through Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection, we can give thanks in all things.
(3) The blessing of obstacles is that we hold on to God’s promises even more through them.
When we are holding on to other things, the pain and suffering from obstacles grow bigger and bigger, and we eventually let go of everything else. In the end, we hold on to the promises of God’s word. In this process, we realize that we are not chasing God’s promises, but those promises are leading us.
(4) The blessing of obstacles is that we rely on God’s omnipotence even more in them.
Especially as we begin the new year, during our morning prayers, God reminded us of His omnipotence through the verse Genesis 18:14: "Is anything too hard for the Lord?" This word encouraged us to rely more on His omnipotence and to long for and expect His help.
Today, we see the psalmist in Psalm 42 facing difficulties. When he found himself in trouble, we can see how he declared to his soul and overcame: "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God." (vv. 5, 11). Focusing on these words, I want to reflect on how those who look to God live, through two points, and apply them to our lives.
First, those who look to God do not despair but long for Him.
In Psalm 42, the word "despair" appears three times (vv. 5, 6, 11). Why did the psalmist despair? The reason is that he was facing circumstances that led him to be discouraged (Park Yun-seon). The circumstances that caused his despair were due to the discipline of God because of his own sins, leading him to a difficult situation. Specifically, these difficulties were oppression from his enemies (v. 9). The oppression was none other than the enemies mocking him, constantly saying, "Where is your God?" (vv. 3, 9). As a result of these continuous insults from his enemies, the psalmist not only became sad (v. 3), but he even thought that God had forgotten him (v. 9).
We, too, like the psalmist, can find ourselves in a place of despair. When we sin and face God's discipline, especially when that discipline lasts a long time, we may grow weary waiting for God's saving hand and become despondent. Moreover, when the hand of salvation seems slow in coming, and we hear the mockery and insults from our enemies saying, "Where is your God?" (v. 3), we are susceptible to despair. In the midst of that despair, we may even doubt God's existence. In other words, we may become distrustful of God. This is truly dangerous. Therefore, we must be careful to avoid this pattern: Sin → God's discipline → suffering → despair → unbelief.
So, what should we do when we feel despondent? The lesson Psalm 42 teaches us is to "long for God." Look at Psalm 42:2: "My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" When the psalmist was despondent, he longed for God, and his longing was expressed through worship. In other words, he sought the presence of God through worship, because his soul longed for God. He expressed this longing with the words: "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God." (v. 1). This longing grew not out of despair or resignation but from a deep realization of human helplessness and worthlessness without God. It was a longing that arose from the psalmist’s recognition of his total dependence on God. However, we must remember that God longs for us even more than we long for Him (Nouwen). If we understand this, we can, like the psalmist, proclaim to our souls: "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God." (vv. 5, 11).
Finally, those who look to God do not remember the past but remember the Lord.
The psalmist remembered the past and became distressed. Let us look at verse 4 of today's passage from Psalm 42: "I remember these things, and I pour out my soul within me: how I used to go with the multitude, leading them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, a multitude keeping a pilgrim feast." The psalmist remembered that in the past, he had acted as a religious leader and had led others to the house of God, but now, in his suffering, he was even more heartbroken (Park Yun-seon). In other words, he found himself in a situation where it seemed like God had abandoned him, and remembering the past when he had received God's grace and led others toward God made his heart even more sorrowful. In this way, the psalmist, in his despair, remembered the grace of God from the past, which made him even more distressed. At this moment, the psalmist remembered the Lord.
Look at verse 6: "O my God, my soul is cast down within me; therefore I will remember You from the land of the Jordan, and from the heights of Hermon, from the Hill Mizar." When we are discouraged, we must not nurture that discouragement but take immediate measures to guard ourselves, and the wisdom in that is remembering the Lord (Park Yun-seon).
In Henry Nouwen's book “The Wounded Healer”, there is a passage that says:
"All of us have painful memories from the past that we do not wish to recall, wounds that we strive to forget. There are painful memories that we keep hidden deep within our hearts, memories we do not want to bring to the surface. But these memories, which we do not want to show to anyone, may seem forgotten as time passes, but eventually, they will resurface due to another painful experience. At that point, we try to push those memories down and forget them. The more we try to do that, the deeper the wound becomes. I believe that only those with the courage to face their wounds and painful memories will be able to become wounded healers. To do this, we need to change our hearts. We need to open our closed hearts to God. Only by faith can we do this. Our sinful nature prevents us from opening our hearts to God when we do not believe in His healing. True healing comes when we remember our painful memories and continuously connect them with the painful memories of Jesus.” (Nouwen)
In the midst of suffering, we need to remember the Lord, but we must also constantly connect our suffering with His painful memories. To do this, we need to pray as we long for God. Look at verse 8 of today's passage, Psalm 42: "The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me—A prayer to the God of my life." The reason the psalmist, in his suffering, longed for God and prayed to the God of life was because he believed that in time, God would pour out His lovingkindness upon him. He also believed that God would make him praise Him. For this reason, he prayed to God. He obeyed Jesus' teaching: "Always pray and never give up", as stated in Luke 18:1.
So, what was the content of his prayer?
(1) The psalmist, speaking of his pain due to the oppression of his enemies, sought God's mercy (Psalm 42:9): "I will say to God, my Rock, 'Why have You forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?'"
(2) The psalmist also presented to God the slanders of his enemies and sought God's justice (v. 10).
In our lives, there are many times when we suffer greatly due to unexpected events. And as the pain and suffering last longer, we can easily become discouraged. However, just as the psalmist declared to his own soul in today's passage, we must do the same: "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance." (vv. 5, 11). We must not be discouraged but long for God, receiving His help, and praise Him instead. We should no longer remember the past, but rather, in remembering the Lord, connect our suffering continually with the suffering of His cross, understanding and enjoying the grace of sharing in His suffering (Philippians 1:29). Therefore, we must not be discouraged or anxious, but rather, in waiting on God, praise Him for His help.
I pray that all of us, by proclaiming Psalm 42:5 and 11 to our souls, will be established as worshipers who do not despair but praise God.
Reflections from Pastor James, who easily became discouraged
(Embracing a hopeful New Year)