EMBRACING HOPE!
Psalm 42
INTRODUCTION:
A young boy had misbehaved and was sent to bed by his mother. Just 5 minutes later he cried out Mom, I’m thirsty, can you bring me a drink of water? No, go to sleep. Five minutes later. Mom? What? Can I have a drink of water? She says I told you no and if you ask again I’m going to have to spank you. Five minutes later Mom? What??? When you come in to spank me, would you bring me a drink of water?
Well, have you ever been thirsty? I mean really thirsty. Your lips become dry. Your mouth is parched. Maybe your lips are even cracked from the dryness. But this is no water available.
Well, this morning we’re going to look at a psalm where the writer is experiencing just that kind of season in life. He’s thirsty — but not so much for water, but for hope! He longs to embrace hope!
You know, hope is a big deal. It’s actually critical to living a good and fulfilling life. Hope points us towards something more. It leads us to long for, to crave for, to expect something better! And without it, we really don’t have much of a life. Today I want to point you in the direction of hope — true hope! Not wishful thinking, but real hope!
This morning we’re looking a psalm which is believed to have been penned by the great King, David. If you have your Bible, turn with me to Psalm 42.
Now, you’ll notice in your Bible — there’s a title above these psalms that says, “The Sons of Korah”. These Sons of Korah were musicians and worship leaders during the days of King David’s reign. And many scholars believe that David probably penned these words — but commissioned the Sons of Korah to put them to music.
But even if he didn’t write them — they were at least based on his own personal experiences.
And so, the context of these psalms are believed to have been written sometime in the middle of David’s life — after that time of his failure and those dark days of his encounter with Bathesheba. Because of David’s sin and shame, he was some 150 miles away from the halls of his palace — living again in the sands of the deserts of Mount Hermon.
But in his separation from his city, he also felt separated from God’s presence. He was on the run, away from his people, away from his friends, and away from the joy of corporate worship. He was desperate, and discouraged and defeated in his soul. Many believe he was so heavy hearted that he was in a full-blown season of depression.
Depression is real. It can be debilitating and almost crippling to our lives.
And there are many believers, many heroes of our faith who (like David) struggled with their emotions and faced times of despair.
Many of you will know the name Martin Luther. He was a 16th century German monk. He had served as a Catholic priest, and a professor of theology. He was the pivotal figure in the 16th-century church. He was the man who is noted for starting the Protestant Reformation. You might recall how he confronted the church of his day by nailing his 96 Thesis (a list of challenges to the practices and teachings that he believed to be in conflict with the Bible).
Well, on one occasion Luther spent three days in a deep depression over something that had gone wrong. He sulked about, and moaned over the issue, and its affect on his life. He didn’t speak much and didn’t want to be seen. He stayed in his home — hiding from everyone. Well, on the third day of his depression his wife came downstairs dressed in mourning clothes. Luther looked at her and asked, “Who’s dead?” To which she replied, “God!” Luther rebuked her, saying, “What do you mean, God is dead? God cannot die.” But she simply replied: “Well, the way you’ve been acting I was sure He had!”
Listen, throughout Christian history many deeply spiritual men and women have experienced depression: Moses did, Elijah did, Jonah did, and many more. Including the writer of this psalm.
Like many before him and many after him — David too had sunk down into emotional sorrow, personal pain, and spiritual discouragement. And this psalm tells his story. But make no mistake about it — while this psalm tell us a story of David’s pain — it also remind us that real Hope is found in God alone!
Listen, the question today isn’t — will you face times of despair, but what will you do (or where will you turn) when you do? My hope is that when trouble comes your way — you will turn TO God and not away from Him. It’s for that reason, that I want us to study this psalm today.
MESSAGE
So look with me at Psalm 42. Here the psalmist writes:
1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? 3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” 4These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.
Sometimes it’s our past circumstances that brings us the greatest pain and discouragement. Even so, David writes,
5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
He goes on to say in verse 6,
6 My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar. 7 Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. 8 By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life. 9 I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” 10 My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
And here we discover that sometimes its our present circumstances that bring us pain and discouragement. Even so, David writes,
11 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
PSALMS 42:1-11 (NIV)
You know, I really love the Psalms, and maybe it’s because of the transparency that we find within them. They just seem to speak to the realities of our lives. In this Psalm David tells us of the deep sadness he faced and how he dealt with it.
I guess what I want you to see is that David is hurting inside. He’s tired. He’s weak. He feels lost and alone. He’s had a hard go of it — and he’s battling despair and discouragement.
Have you ever been there? Have you ever felt this way?
David begins with a familiar line to most of us. He says:
1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.
Now, I know this has become a beautiful phrase to the Christian community. We’ve written songs about it, printed shirts with it, screened it on banners and coffee mugs. And it sounds sweet. But this was a desperate cry from a broken man. When he used this phrase, he knew what it meant to be thirsty. Really thirsty. Remember, the Hebrew people lived in a desert land. Their history was a nomadic one. They had a keen awareness of the need for water. Because it was scarce. It was hard to find.
The heat and lack of shade were so strong that a man could dehydrate and waste away faster than one might imagine.
So, when the writer says… ”As the deer pants for water…” He’s revealing his utter desperation for God and His presence. He was saying, “Without you — I feel like I’m dying.”
What we see in this Psalm is a man fighting for hope.
So where does he turn? What can we learn from this psalm and David’s response to his despair?
First of all, when life hits you hard — David says you must:
1. POUR OUT YOUR HEART TO GOD.
This is the phrase that David uses. He says…
4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul:
David’s first step in moving towards hope was to pour out his heart to God. It might sound simple — but I’ve discovered that many people are just afraid to do this, they are afraid to get honest with God. Instead, they just play it safe and fill their prayers with polite religious phrases so that they are careful not to offend God.
And yet, that doesn’t really make sense, because he already knows what’s going on in your life, and he already knows what’s in your heart.
You can lie to others and there’s a good chance they’ll believe you. You can even lie to yourself, and make yourself believe it. But you cannot lie to God. If you pretend in your prayers that everything is OK even when it’s not, don’t think you’re pulling one over on God. He is not that easily fooled.
Here’s what I’m saying. Prayer time is not a performance. It’s not a job interview. There’s no pressure here to put your best foot forward. The time you spend in prayer is a time when you have the liberty — and the privilege — of being gut-level no-holds-barred honest with the One who already knows everything about you.
C.S. Lewis, in his book on prayer, said…
“We must lay before him what is in us; not what ought to be in us.”
When you’re frustrated and discouraged and disillusioned and discontent, you can tell God about it. He can handle your honesty. In fact, Jesus would urge us to be honest with God — because the truth is a powerful thing.
In John 8, Jesus said, “The truth will set you free.” Now, he was talking about Himself — and putting your trust in Him. But in like manner, proclaiming the truth also has the power to set you free. It frees you from living a hidden or fake life. It also always you to move towards healing.
It’s at this point of gut-level honesty that God is able to begin his work in your life. He can answer a prayer you’re not willing to pray. So be honest, and pour out your heart to God.
Doing so allows you to follow in David’s footsteps—and he second thing his story teaches you is to:
2. ACKNOWLEDGE GOD’S PRESENCE AND POWER.
It’s not enough to simply bear your heart to God in prayer — but along with that, David teaches you to acknowledge the presence of God at work in your life. Because sometimes the feelings we expose in prayer are what we are feeling — but they’re not always the truth.
Feelings have a way of distorting reality. Such was the case for David. If you notice his words, you’ll see that he seems to contradict himself. There seems to be a disconnect between what he feels and what he knows.
What he feels in verse 9 doesn’t jive with reality. In verse 9 he says,
I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”
But what he knows is this…in verse 8 he says,
By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life.
So… What is it? Which is correct?
Has God forgotten him, or is God with him day and night?
God is with Him! While his feelings are real — they aren’t truth. He certainly feels alone. He feels forgotten. But that’s not the truth! Because God was with Him. God was present and working in His life — he just didn’t feel God’s presence.
That’s why it’s so important to do as he did in verse 8 and acknowledge the fact that GOD IS WITH YOU — and He directs His song to you at night (meaning that God singing over you). He is blessing you. He is with you and for you and His power is on your life.
So, when suffering comes… When sadness sets in… When depression keeps you from wanting to get out of your bed… It may feel like God is a million miles away. But He’s not. Acknowledge what you know — not what you feel.
Recognize God’s presence by faith and know that with His presence comes His power…a power so great that nothing can stand against it. And if God is for you — then who can stand against you?
What David discovered in his own despair was that when his feelings affirmed his pain. He needed to affirm God’s presence!
And the same is true for you. When your sadness and despair tell you God has abandoned you, reject that lie and declare what is true. Remind yourself of God’s abiding presence — and tell yourself that:
— God is good.
— He loves you.
— He is with you.
— And He is in control.
Notice in verse 7 that the psalmist says, even the winds and the waves are in the hands of God. This speaks to God’s great power!
When David writes,
7 Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.
In one sense, he is acknowledging that even the winds and the waves crashing around him belong to God. Even they aren’t outside of God’s control. Even the wind and the waves are His.
It reminds me of a New Testament story where Jesus (the Son of God) demonstrated His power of just such a storm.
As you’ll recall, there’s a story about Jesus pausing his busy routine to go up on a mountain to pray. As he did, he sent his disciples ahead of him across a Great Lake on evening. Separated from Him, a storm began to brew. In just a short time — a massive storm blew onto the lake and threatened to sink them. Fearful for their lives they panicked. But in just a moment — Jesus comes to them, walking on the water. He brings his power and His peace…and he waters quiet down and the storm ceases.
And do you know why?
Because all the waves and breakers that might threaten to sweep over us — are all in His hands. He is over all things! And when he’s present, we have no need to fear.
Many years ago, Robert Louis Stevenson, told a similar story about a ship caught in a terrible storm. As the storm raged — hurricane winds pounded the ship. The driving rain and crashing waves were so strong that they threatened to bring the ship down. In the midst of the terror, one daring man pulled himself up from the bowels of the ship to it’s slippery deck — and then across the ship to the stairs leading up to the ship’s hold, where the captain stood. Fearful of what he’d see, he careful looked into the hold — where he saw the captain, standing confidently at his post. While watching him, the captain turned and gave a nod and a smile to the fearful seaman. With that, the man went back below deck with a new found peace. To his crewmen he said, ”I have seen the face of the captain, and he smiled at me. All is well.”
Listen, when the storms of life hit you, and discouragement creeps into your soul — when you feel like you are drowning in despair. Look to the captain…and see if He is at his post,
Psalm 42:8 affirms that the captain of our ship is always at his post — and he’s always smiling. It says,
8 By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life.
David teaches us to always acknowledge God’s presence. Because He’s always with us!
But sometimes what’s need most is what David did multiple times in these psalms. When life hits you hard — you must pour your heart out to God, acknowledge God’s presence, and thirdly, you must…
3. TELL YOURSELF WHAT YOU NEED TO HEAR.
Don’t wait for someone else to speak into your life — you do that. Take the initiative to proclaim the word of God and the encouragement found within it to yourself.
In this psalm David talks about the voices of the dissenters all around him…
10 My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
And sometimes — that’s just the way it is. An unfortunate fact of life is that there are many such voices in the world around — voices that cast doubt on God’s faithfulness, and voices that cast doubt on your ability to receive God’s blessings. They say things like:
— “You’ll never make it,” they say.
— “God has forgotten you,” they say.
— “Why don’t you just give up?” they say.
But you have a choice— you can listen to what they’re telling you, or you can tell yourself what you need to hear.
1 Samuel 30 tells of a time when David was deeply discouraged by all that was going on his life. His own troops were threatening to kill him. David was just about ready to give up, but then the Bible says…
…David encouraged himself in the Lord his God. (1 Samuel 30:6 KJV)
DAVID TELLS US THAT theRE IS A Remedy for Discouragement — and it’s NOT FOUND IN THE VOICES OF OTHERS — IT’S found in God!
So encourage yourself to HOPE IN HIM!
Again and again David points to the source of his help.
He continually reminds himself and us that there is an answer to our sorrow. After each refrain of pain, suffering, and discouragement — he offers himself a refrain of hope. He literally speaks to his heart when he says:
Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God…
Psalm 42:5, 42:11
So, what do you do when you can’t change your outward circumstances?
We change our inner circumstances!
You speak to yourself and direct your heart to…Put your hope in God!
It was the late Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, (that great British pastor of Westminster Chapel in London) who reflected upon the reality of depression who wrote in his book, Spiritual Depression,
“Have you not realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?
He suggested that we, take those thoughts that come to us when we wake up in the morning and turn them around.
One of my former professors at Anderson University is fond of saying:
“Take your questions and turn them into declaratives and exclamatory statements!” — Dr. Kris Barnett
— Instead of asking, “Does God love me?” Declare, “God does love me!”
— Instead of asking, “Will God help me?” Declare, “God will help me!”
— Instead of asking, “Is God with me?” Declare, “God is with me!”
—Instead of listening to discouragement — remind yourselves that genuine Hope is found in God.
So, speak to your soul! And declare the truth of God’s Word in your life!
When life hits you hard and the enemy of your soul is pushing you down and telling you lies, it’s up to you to stand in faith, empowered by the Spirit of God and encourage yourself to find your strength in the Lord your God.
When every one around you is negative and critical and speaking doubt and despair, and you’re tempted to join in their songs of defeat — stop. Tell yourself what you need to hear — that God is God, and he is good, and he will see you through. So, EMBRACE HOPE!
You know, hope is a small word, but it is one of the most powerful.
It’s important to understand that the Hebrew word for hope doesn’t imply that something might happen. That’s not what hope is. It’s not just wishful thinking.
Some people think hope is an emotion. They say, “I’m feeling hopeful.” But true hope is a discipline, it’s a determination, it’s a choice, It’s a determination to believe in God’s Reality and His Power, and His abiding Presence.
And even when the world seems to be crashing down around you—hope turns to God.
Hope is a confident assurance that something better is ahead. And in regards to our faith in Christ, Hope is having a confident expectation that He will sustain you and strengthen you and heal you and help you and one day — take you to reign with Him forever!
The key to surviving any challenge or crisis any season of discouragement is not to BETTER YOURSELF — it’s not to TRY HARDER — its to embrace hope. Choose to put your hope in God.
Hope acknowledges that your future is better in His hands than in yours. That’s what the prophet Jeremiah was getting at when he spoke to the people of his day and said, while life is hard and times are bad — you can trust in God. For He says to you:
“’For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’” (Jeremiah 29:11).
People often distort this verse and rip it from the context in which it was originally written. But know this, the prospering that God sought to do in the lives of His people then — and in the lives of His people now had NOTHING to do with money or possessions, it had to do with HOPE!
God’s plan was and is to PROSPER YOU WITH HOPE!
For it was the prophet Isaiah who declared:
“Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:31).
When our spiritual life becomes dry, and we long for something more…something fresh (like the deer panting for the water brooks), we can find refreshment in Jesus!
He brings us tranquility in the midst of turbulence. And sustenance in the midst of suffering. And He offers us peace in the midst of our pain!
So if you’re running on empty right now — be honest with yourself and others. Stop pretending. Hope in God. Be refreshed by His power and His presence. Folks, that’s the message of Psalm 42. You can be re-filled, refreshed, and renewed.
CLOSING:
I want to invite you to stand with me — and as we close this morning. If you have a burden that’s tuned into discouragement and you feel empty and dry…I invite you to join me around these altars so we can pray with you.
If you have a burden that’s too big, a pain that’s too great, or maybe you just feel empty and dry…would you come. I want to pray for you today!
__________
If you’ve not given your life to Jesus yet, then I encourage you to begin there.
Because if you haven’t trusted in Jesus — then you have no hope, not now or in the days to come. Your future is uncertain and you have no idea what tomorrow may bring. Decide right here and now, at this very moment, to fix your hope on the promises and the presence of God that we find in Jesus.
Today is your day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2). So . . .
▪ Admit – that your a sinner in need of a Savior (Romans 6:23)
▪ Abandon – self-effort and realize I can not be saved by your own effort (Acts 16:31)
▪ Accept Jesus’s free gift of salvation and the payment for your sins. (John 3:16)
▪ Acknowledge Him as your Lord and Savior (Acts 4:12)
If you’d like to do that now, then pray with me.
HeavenlyFather, I admit that I am a sinner and I’ve chosen my way over yours too often. But all that changes today. Because, I believe in Your Son, Jesus. I believe that He came from Heaven to earth to pay for my sin. I believe He died on the cross, shed His blood, was put in a grave — and rose again. So, today — I put my faith in Jesus. Forgive me of my sin. Save me and give me new life in you forever. I pray this in Jesus name, Amen.
If you prayed today and made a decision to follow Jesus — would you let us know? We are so proud of you.This is the greatest decision you’ll ever make.