Have you ever had those moments when you felt like the pressures of life were so great that you would like to simply fly away and find some peace and solitude? I think that most of us, if we are honest, would have to admit that there have been times when we felt overwhelmed and under-appreciated.
David, the sweet Psalmist of Israel, shared his innermost emotional struggles in many of his psalms. He reveals to us that frustration and despair are not foreign things to the people of God, "Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my supplication. Attend unto me, and hear me: I mourn in my complaint, and make a noise; Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked: for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me. My heart is sore pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me. And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah." (Psalm 55:1-7). We sometimes set ourselves up for spiritual and emotional failure when we assume that dedicated Christians always live in peace and security. There will be times in all of our lives that we would long to simply escape the rat race and warfare of daily existence.
Jesus never promised that life would always be easy. In fact, He often directed the disciples to launch out in their boat when He knew that a storm would come. His presence in the storm is that which should give us Divine peace. Life will never be easy on this side of glory, but His constant companionship should carry us through the moments of worry and despair. Our existence, at present, will encounter many storms. In fact, I have heard it said that we are either currently in a storm, or we have just emerged from a storm, or we are preparing for the next storm. The promise of Jesus that He would never leave us should at least give us hope and comfort.
Why do we face trouble? Sometimes our difficulties are the result of our own foolish or sinful choices. God will always forgive our sins when we come to Him in repentance, but we may still have to suffer the consequences of our choices. Sometimes it is the actions of others that will cause us grief. Sometimes we must simply see that we are part of a fallen race that suffers the consequences of our sinful nature.
Sometimes our present suffering will be a mystery to us until either God reveals His plan, or we enter Heaven's glory. Regardless of the reasons for our struggles, we can be assured that God loves those that are His, and He has a purpose for all He allows in our lives.
I must confess that I am prone to allow a level of despair to sometimes overwhelm me, but I am glad that God is faithful even when I am fearful. I like the way David ends the previously cited psalm, "Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee." (Psalm 55:22-23).
God does not promise to remove the difficulties that make us want to fly away, but He does promise to sustain us in the midst of our trials. There is coming a day when there will be no more tears, but until then we have the presence of Jesus to help us through the times of joy and despondency.
Thank you Jesus!
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