April 27 I Wednesday

1 Kings 1-2

Luke 19:28-48

“You have taken account of my miseries; Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book?”    —Psalm 56:8, NASB

There was a young woman, who loved Jesus and served Him faithfully, that longed to be married. Even though she was getting older, she refused to compromise her standards or lower her convictions. But with each passing year, her hope grew smaller and smaller. Yet, God answered her prayer and gave her a godly man to be her husband. After getting married, they longed to have children, but struggled with pregnancy. The woman conceived twice and lost both children.

      A pastor visited her after her second loss. There was nothing he could say; he simply sat and listened to her pour out her heart, cry and lament. Then, he turned and read Psalm 88 out loud: “LORD, You are the God who saves me; day and night I cry out to You. May my prayer come before You; turn Your ear to my cry. I am overwhelmed with troubles and my life draws near to death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like one without strength…You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Your wrath lies heavily on me; You have overwhelmed me with all Your waves…I am confined and cannot escape; my eyes are dim with grief. I call to You, LORD, every day; I spread out my hands to You. Do You show Your wonders to the dead? Do their spirits rise up and praise you? Is Your love declared in the grave, Your faithfulness in Destruction? Are Your wonders known in the place of darkness, or Your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?…Why, LORD, do You reject me and hide Your face from me?…You have taken from me friend and neighbour—darkness is my closest friend” (Psalm 88:1-18).

      How could the pastor read such a psalm to a woman who suffered such a loss? Of all the psalms, Psalm 88 is the darkest and most hopeless one. Yet, the words of Psalm 88 were written for her for that day. It allowed her to express her feelings, while not letting her remain a prisoner of it. She was able to take her feelings into the largeness of God and His purposes. Hearing Psalm 88 was a turning point in her life; she slowly re-entered her work, her loving service in the church and her involvement with global missions as a lay person.

      In difficult times, we should never stop praying and meditating on Scripture to fuel those prayers. Our acts of lovingkindness should also not cease because we are in hopeless situations. May we remain faithful and steadfast upon God in prayer, Scripture and ministry to others through whatever trials we face each day.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, You see my situation, my hurt and my tears. Even through the trials of life, please help me remain steadfast upon You in prayer, Scripture and ministry to others. Thank You, Father.