Help! I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up!

H.G. Wells said, "If you fell down yesterday, stand up today." Those words may seem rather simple, as we all know the 'action' of 'standing up' once you have fallen down is a little more difficult than we might imagine. I have fallen more than a couple of times in my lifetime, banging up my knees or elbows, but when I was younger, I bounced back from those falls a whole lot quicker than I do in my sixth decade of life! Just because we are 'growing up in Christ' doesn't mean we won't fall, and it certainly doesn't mean a fall will result in us getting up 'easier' just because we 'know Jesus' a little better than we did in our earlier years of following him. Sometimes we just need to cry out for help to get up! It isn't a bad thing to admit we need help, although some may think it is a sign of weakness to admit it. 

If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open. (James 1:5)

Some of the reason we fall is that we aren't 'aware' of what we are doing, and we don't take the time to ask God for clarity. We just trudge ahead into the 'unknown' and then wonder why we are flat on our face in just a short time. If you have already moved ahead of Jesus, don't despair! He stands ready to help you stand when you aren't able to do it on your own, but you do need to ask for his help. There is just something about admitting we need help that breaks down some of the stubborn pride and self-sufficiency that caused us to fall in the first place. Sometimes we want 'all our options open' when we pray - like a 'blanket covering' over all the 'possible options' for how we could get out of the situation we find ourselves facing. God doesn't want us to limit him to the 'options' we can imagine as much as he wants us to trust him to reveal the 'one way up' that he has designed.

God loves to help, but we have to allow him to help. It would be far better that we never find ourselves 'falling' and 'unable to get up', but when we find ourselves in those circumstances, it is far wiser to ask for his help than it is to struggle to find our way up! We all fall. Don't be afraid to admit you need his help. He stands ready to help. Just sayin!

Don't ignore the need

 "Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world. For, indeed, that's all who ever have."(Margaret Mead)

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. (Matthew 16:24-25)

A few caring people was all Jesus needed to spread the good news about the grace he offered. A few caring people is all this world needs to see that message continue to bear the fruit of changed lives today. We have a commission, but are we fulfilling it to the best of our ability and to the best of his enabling? Our ability may be lacking at times, but his ability always exceeds our expectations!

All that we have - Jesus never asked for more than that we lay down our lives in service to him. What might that look like today? It could be that he asks us to reach out to the shut-in widow or even stop long enough to talk with the woman at the grocery store awaiting her rideshare pick-up, helping her to load that purchase into the ride when it arrives. We don't have to change the world from a pulpit - we need to change it from our own front door!

Give - not take. We live in a society bent on what is in it for them - it seems that if there is no immediate benefit to one's own self, there is little desire to do something. What can we 'give' of ourselves this week that will make someone's day brighter, a little less burdensome, or draw them closer to God in some way? It could be that one action you are being urged to do is the very thing another needs more than any wrapped gift under their tree this year.

Don't hang on - let go. The more we let go of our own agenda, the more we see the needs of those around us. Perhaps this is why Jesus told us to lay down our lives - to not hang onto it. He knew the more we focus on our own life, the less we see those around us. The less we see them, the easier it is to ignore the need we have been called to meet in that very moment. Disciples aren't afraid to both see and meet the need. Just sayin!

Desperately Determined

She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe. For she thought to herself, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” (Mark 5:27-28)

There is something 'desperate' about this woman's faith, isn't there? She wasn't afraid of the crowds - even though she would have been deemed 'unclean' because of her disease. She wasn't concerned that her need was too great for the healing touch of her God. She wasn't going to allow her 'weakness' to impact her drive to obtain her healing. She was 'desperately determined'. Some of us need to get this desperate and determined in our pursuit of the things we need God to do in our lives - to 'drive toward' our healing instead of wallowing in our weakness.

If I can but touch his robe...

She didn't even need to talk with Jesus, have him stop and acknowledge her. Her desperation led to her to believe that even though it would be better to behold his face, hear his voice, and 'feel' his touch, she would do whatever it took to get 'just close enough' to receive from him. Sometimes we approach God this way, don't we? We get 'just close enough' to receive, but not 'near enough' to really relish his presence. The thing about God is that he understands this type of faith, but he takes it one step further! Just like Jesus did that day, he turns toward us, asks the pointed questions, and then waits on our response.

Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?” (Mark 5:30)

Who touched me? As much as we might want to just be 'healed', Jesus is more concerned that we share in his presence. The woman's desperate faith gave her the drive to press through the crowds, but would it be enough to drive her toward 'come forward' with her need in the midst of what seemed like a humbling situation? Some of us need to be humble enough to acknowledge our need. We could just continue to 'creep up on Jesus' whenever we have a need, but he is much more delighted with our face-to-face encounter with us. If we approach with desperation, driven by hope, why is it so hard for us to just openly acknowledge our need? When we do, miracles happen! Just sayin!

Has God gone silent?

My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief. (Psalm 22:1-2)

I think we have all been in that place at one time or another where we find ourselves actually thinking God has somehow abandoned us. The circumstances suggest the worst is about to happen, we begin to whirl out of control emotionally, our thoughts are running rampant from one perception to the next, and we somehow feel like we are in it all alone. When we don't IMMEDIATELY see the answer to the circumstances, we might just begin to doubt God will lend any help, all our calls for help seemingly falling on deaf ears. Are we wrong to express our doubts or 'struggle of faith' in those moments? Absolutely not! God doesn't 'ding us' for our moments of doubt - he uses them to strengthen or deepen our faith.

It is never wrong to seek to understand why such difficulties have emerged and why God seems to be allowing us to experience such trying stuff. We don't know the purpose for the troubling times, but we can stand assured that God is not far from us as we navigate through them. He is right there - we just don't appreciate him in the midst of the chaos yet. Times are confusing and we want to express our doubts, but should we? Yes, it is never wrong to express our concerns and bring our doubts to God. He doesn't give us demerits for doubts - he is at work revealing how 'unfounded' those doubts are compared to the greatness of his power and grace in our lives.

We might think we have to understand everything to get through everything, but the opposite can be quite true. We might not understand much, but with God, we navigate quite well through unknown territory. One thing I have realized is that I don't have to 'fake' my faith. If I have doubts and worries, I need to express them. My heart is not hidden from God, so my thoughts don't need to be, either. God is not put off by our expressions of fear, doubt, or lack of understanding. He is encouraged by our honesty and the freedom we feel to express them to him. 

The way we seek to understand is important. We can ask for clarity out of doubt, but God asks us to trust even when the circumstances seem harder than we can handle. Trust him to bring the clarity - to remove the niggling fear and doubt. He will do much more than we imagine, but we need to be honest with him when we are struggling with fear and doubt. He doesn't want us to be overwhelmed - he wants us to be aware, alert, and open to his movement within those hard times. He hasn't abandoned us - he has just 'gone silent' long enough for us to express our need. Just sayin!

Is it tangible or intangible?

Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing. (Psalm 34:10) 

David said, "“You are my Master! Every good thing I have comes from you.” (Psalm 16:2) Every good thing comes from you - I don't have anything of 'goodness' or 'value' apart from you, God. Because of his relationship with God, he lacks (has no need that is unmet) nothing. Whatever is good or 'beneficial' for us, God provides. Nowhere in scripture does it say all our 'wants' will be met, but we will never lack what God has determined to be of 'value' or 'benefit' for our lives. 

Sometimes we complain because we see something as 'beneficial' for us, but then we don't ever come to realize it in our lives. We forget that God might see it differently! He might actually be withholding that thing from our lives because it is far from 'beneficial' or 'good'! Now I have gone to meddling, haven't I? It is always good to remember God cares way more about our character and our relationship with him that produces that character than he does all our 'wants' that we think we 'need' in order to be happy in this lifetime. 

God gives us both the tangible and intangible. We need a new vehicle because ours has seen its best days and has resulted in mounting repair costs that far outweigh its value - God will give us a means to obtain a new vehicle. Will it be brand-spanking new? Not always - but it will be of a greater value than the one we have been sinking good money after bad into with all those repairs. We need to let go of bitterness or regret over missing out on some opportunities, so God helps us see the 'value' in letting go and in allowing him to bring about the good he desires in our lives. Tangible automobile, intangible healing of our wounded mind and emotions. 

The thing I think God wants us to see today is that it is not 'wrong' to want something, but not every 'want' is good for us. Sometimes we have to let God show us when those things we 'want' are not what he desires for us and then let them go so he can give us what we need. The thing that meets our need will be the very thing that brings about his character development within us. The intangible may be our need today - seek it wholeheartedly. The tangible may be our need - ask for that need to be met as God sees fit. Then trust him to meet both of those needs because he withholds no good thing from those he loves. Just sayin!

Disturbed by a need

Follow My teachings and learn from Me. I am gentle and do not have pride. You will have rest for your souls. For My way of carrying a load is easy and My load is not heavy.” (Matthew 11:29-30)

We all have moments when we see needs, but we have no clue how to meet them. Things upset us, these things are right there in our face, many times making us mad, sad, and desiring to see something different as a result of some action we may take. When we are disturbed on behalf of God, we are oftentimes moved in the most significant ways. We may even embrace a calling in life as a result of the burden we bear over the matters that upset us. When we are bothered by something - the need is right there before us - we are likely going to see God impact the lives of people IF we put ourselves out there.

We don't have to have a formal position to meet a need if we possess a God-given passion over the need around us. We will make a difference if we follow the burden God places in our hearts. Seek God over the matter faithfully - not just once, or even twice - but repeatedly until you see the results. We may 'hurt' for the need on our hearts for a while, but as long as we are taking that 'hurt' to God for his wisdom and direction, we will be in the best place to receive the wisdom to know what to do. Talk with God about the need you see before you - frequently, deeply, in truth. In prayer, God will help you see his 'bigness' and his 'ability' to help with that burden.

Nothing is too small for God's heart. Nothing is too big for his power. If we have a heart and vision for the need, God wants to hear about it. There is power if prayer - time talking with God. Let God help you define the calling upon your life over the need. It needs to be very clear, but many times we begin with a very 'muddy' understanding of the need and how we may be involved in seeing that need met. It is in times of prayer that we get that clarity. God has a way of getting the 'mud' out of our vision. It only happens when we bring it before God and allow him to bring that clarity. 

God desires to not only carry that burden, but to help us see where we can be instrumental in his hands to meet that need. The burden comes because we are upset by what we see. The calling comes as we clarify that vision before him. Then we give him the burden - he carries it while we DO what he asks us to do. There is no need to carry the burden alone - it is HIS. We are HIS workers - it is never just OUR burden. If we pray on it long enough, we begin to see how he plans to use us to begin to engage in the need. Just sayin!

Never walk away

Everybody wants to do something to help, but nobody wants to be first. 

(Pearl Bailey)

Never walk away from someone who deserves help; your hand is God’s hand for that person. Don’t tell your neighbor “Maybe some other time” or “Try me tomorrow” when the money’s right there in your pocket. Don’t figure ways of taking advantage of your neighbor when he’s sitting there trusting and unsuspecting. (Proverbs 3:27-29)

Your hand is God's hand - can we just ponder that one for a moment or two? What was the last thing your hand did for someone other than yourself? It goes without saying, we may deny ourselves very little, all the while oblivious to the need that could be right there next to us. Never walk away - that is a pretty direct command, but I will be the first to admit, I've done it. If it is within our ability, why don't we take the next step and meet the need? Maybe it is like Bailey said and we don't want to be the one to take the 'first step'.

I know some will focus on the words "deserves help" in this passage but let me be the first to warn us against judging who 'deserves' our help. Yes, I am very sensitive to the fact there are a lot of people with signs on street corners who are neither homeless nor out of work. Perhaps I am a little 'skeptical' that every 'reported need' isn't really a reality these days as there are many who have found this 'panhandling gig' pays better than getting a 9-5 job. There are ways to meet the needs of those with genuine need - we may just have to be a little more sensitive to hear God's urging and a bit more willing to do what he asks of us.

If our hand is God's hand, where should that hand be 'employed' today? This is the real question set forth in our passage. It isn't 'if we see a need' - it is 'when we see that need'. There will always be needs we can meet, but we may not immediately recognize them. Have you ever received a note from someone telling you how much your words meant to them when they were going through something in their lives? How about hearing someone recount something you had done kind of 'spur of the moment' and telling you how much that met a specific need? You were being God's hand and probably didn't even know it.

We might not think of this passage as one of God's 'major commands', like the Ten Commandments outlined in the Old Testament. Love your neighbor is a pretty consistent command throughout all of scripture and was the one command Jesus modeled as he walked this earth. Love God and love others - worship God and help others. This is the crux of all the commandments. Just sayin!

Don't get too comfortable

Be generous with me and I’ll live a full life; not for a minute will I take my eyes off your road. Open my eyes so I can see what you show me of your miracle-wonders. I’m a stranger in these parts; give me clear directions. My soul is starved and hungry, ravenous!— insatiable for your nourishing commands. (Psalm 119:18)

If you have ever been in a situation where you kind of feel like it is 'foreign' to you, you probably felt a little like a fish out of water. You flopped around, struggling to find a way back to where you felt comfort and ease. I know moments like these cause most of us some angst, increasing our anxiety level more and more as we wander around a little lost and insecure. Being a 'stranger' isn't easy to deal with, probably because as 'sojourners' in this place of discomfort we find it hard for us to move from stranger or foreigner to being at ease dwelling where we are placed. God isn't immune to our discomfort - he has a plan for it!

Take a moment to dwell on the idea of God having a plan for our feeling a little like life is a bit 'foreign' to us right now. There is much to be learned when we are made a little uncomfortable. It is usually God 'stirring up' something within us that he is about to do within us. As our psalmist prays, he asks God to open his eyes so he doesn't miss what God is about to do. I often pray this same prayer - sometimes as nothing more than what I refer to as 'arrow prayers' - those tiny prayers that are about a sentence long, but are intentional and from the heart. The truth is our souls are kind of starving a bit and if we are to find the nourishment our souls need need, we need to get a little more than a 'bit' uncomfortable in order to be open to how God will meet those needs. 

Insatiable appetites for what God has in store for us - what image does that conjure up for you? I have those nights when nothing looks good in the fridge, pantry, or fruit bowl. I want something, but I don't know what it is. That is kind of like what it is to feel a little like a stranger in our present circumstances - we know God is working, we are hungry for something, but we have no idea what it will be that will satisfy that hunger. We are ravenous, but we aren't able to find the very thing that will satisfy that insatiability until we allow God to take us a little bit further into that place of discomfort. It seems a little like God might just be a little 'hard on us' when he allows us to get uncomfortable - feeling like life is a bit foreign - but the way to discover new the new things he desires for us is for us to get out of our comfort zone and into the place where he is free to move. 

God isn't cruel when he allows us to feel discomfort - he is exercising the greatest of kindnesses toward us! He knows we will have our deepest desire kindled at the point of our greatest discomfort. Just sayin!

Want meets need

You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need. 

(Vernon Howard)

When all you really want is only what you really need - ponder that one for just a moment because I think we oftentimes aren't really content with what we need - we want more. In fact, society actually encourages us to live way beyond our needs - fulfilling those far out wants we may have. When our needs and wants grow closer and closer together, we may just be at the place of having drawn so near to God's heart that all those 'far out wants' aren't all that important anymore.

No doubt about it! God is good— good to good people, good to the good-hearted. But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness. I was looking the other way, looking up to the people At the top, envying the wicked who have it made, Who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world. (Psalm 73:1-5)

We can totally miss the goodness God provides within our lives when all we are pursuing is the long list of wants we can conjure up in our minds and hearts. There are times when I need to rein in my list of wants, but find it hard to do because my mind and heart are all mixed up in their pursuit. That is when I have to go to God and ask him to change my focus - because I have grown too intent on looking up to the wrong things and people in life. We can all find ourselves there at times, but God's greatest glory is revealed when we allow the change in who we 'put at the top' of our focus.

Whoever is intent on pursuing 'things at the top' as the world would desire will find they are very displeased with the outcome of such pursuits - they don't last and leave us wanting even more. If you have ever tried to eat just one potato chip, you know it is nearly impossible - one creates the taste for another. The same is true when we focus on 'things at the top' as the world portrays them - things they declare we cannot live without. We 'taste' a bit of what is offered and then we want even more. 

When wants match needs it isn't by accident - it is because we have allowed our thoughts to be filtered by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit within. Filtered to the point we don't 'crave' what isn't going to fulfill us. Filtered so that all we want becomes more of God's grace, love, and presence. I daresay we all have experienced that place a bit from time to time, but how awesome would it be to actually live there all the time? Just askin!

First and Great

The last shall be first - be humble to be made great. These ideas seem a little like they might be an 'oxymoron', don't they? How can the one who is last possibly be first? How could being humble mean we will ever know greatness? I guess the way we define 'first' and 'great' are what may be of concern here, my friends. The words 'last' and 'first' frequently carry the connotation of being the one at the head of the line, in first place, or even getting it done ahead of anyone else. Have you ever been 'last' to finish something? I know I have and others rubbed it in because I was so far behind them in getting it done! It made me want to always be done 'first' because I didn't like being 'last'. If I were to be honest here, my 'ego' took a hit by being singled out as 'last'. I think others struggle with similar issues, so maybe it is time to look at the value of being 'last'.

Be humble before the Lord, and he will make you great. James 4:10 ERV

'Last' doesn't mean we are 'dumb', 'dense', or 'deviant'. In fact, it may be more like we are 'determined', 'deliberate', and 'dedicated'. God doesn't reward us so much for getting across the finish line first, as much as he rewards us for having finished well. To finish well one may take a little longer than others. It isn't for lack of trying to be there with the rest of the group, but rather what was learned in the time between starting and ending that makes our 'finishing' the reward! There are times when I have started something and finished it quickly - but on those occasions where I took my time to really put in some effort, the thing produced was much different!

Some think of humility as the 'abasement' or 'putting down' of one's self. It is not 'putting self down' to the point the individual or their efforts are seen as insignificant, though. Humility is really the ability to see one's self in a very realistic way - a sinner in need of continual grace! In fact, a humble man's significance is so great God sees to it that we are continually renewed in grace! The humble man or woman is one who recognizes their need and isn't going to cover it up. In truth, the humble are those who don't try to live independent of God's grace. They are fully aware of their need and live in such a way their need is constantly being placed into the hands of Jesus so he can help get them through to the finish line. This is indeed 'greatness' - to be the object of God's grace. To be great, one needs to acknowledge their need of grace - to lay down the self-effort of trying to 'get right' by doing life without God. Just sayin!

Bargain or not

Do you barter with people? When I visited Nogales, Mexico, the advice I received from others who had visited there before me was that I should never pay full price for what a vendor is asking when I wanted to purchase something. I was to 'barter with them' until I felt a fair price was met. For example, I wanted this blanket marked at however many Pesos and I was supposed to say what I was willing to pay for it. Usually the vendor would meet my request with great resistance and shake his head vigorously that he was opposed to such an offer. Part of the 'bartering' was that I was to walk away as though I were no longer interested. If you have ever done this, you know they follow you asking you offering you some reduced rate, but still not what you desired to pay. If all goes well, you will 'wear them down' to a reasonable price you both can agree upon. In turn, you walk home with the blanket, feeling very good about the 'bargain' you just found. Truth be told, we sometimes do the same thing with God - we approach him with our desires and we have something in mind we will 'do' or 'trade' if he will just agree to meet that desire. God doesn't need us to bargain with him - he needs us to be honest about our need and just as truthful about our desires! 

Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. (Matthew 7:7 ERV)

I think we may all be a little guilty of 'bargaining' with God from time to time - some of us use this 'tactic' way too frequently, though. We cannot expect God to 'chase us down' to give into our demands, though. The things we have need of in our lives are God's pleasure to meet for us in some fashion. Now, I grant you, the 'fashion' God chooses may differ from the way we would have chosen to have the need met on occasion, but if we remain open to how God meets our needs, we might just find our needs are met in a fuller and more consistent manner than the way we imagined! When my kids were growing up, money was very tight. I had to rely upon what some call 'hand-me-down' clothes for them on more than one occasion. While it wasn't quite like going to Target or Walmart and buying them brand new, the blessing those clothes provided for my kiddos was astronomical! They were well-dressed, always clean, and they had 'new clothes' to wear that fit well. The even better news was that the bargain find at a garage sale or thrift store, or the 'freebies' I received from friends met every need and kept me on target with my budget! My friends saw a need, reached out and met it as best they could, even blessing my kiddos with new things from time to time!

The needs we have are oftentimes not spoken, though. It is as though we keep them all bundled up inside, afraid if we told God what we needed or desired, he might just 'turn us down'. I am sure we have all felt that way from time to time - as though our need or desire were something God would never 'agree to meet' in our lives. There is no need or desire that God considers insignificant, yet there are different ways he meets each one of them. We have to learn to trust God to meet them in the way he knows to be best for us. Just ask - openly, honestly, and without fear. He isn't going to laugh in your face! He might just show you how magnificently he has prepared to meet that need, but was just waiting for your to ask! Yes, there are times when we ask and we don't 'receive' right then and there, or exactly as we might have imagined we'd receive the answer. When I was younger, I asked God if I could remarry at some point, and I shared honestly with him what I desired in a future mate. He never said 'no' to me, but if you know me, then you know I am still single. Did he fail to answer me, or deny my 'request'? No! He showed me ways to be content and to be a woman of integrity in my singleness. It became quite clear to me that there were things I was preparing to do that I knew nothing of when I was younger that would have been harder to do if I were remarried. I can honestly say I never regretted not remarrying - I am grateful in my singleness and content to allow him to use me as he desires.

Ask God - be direct - don't beat around the bush. He has ways of meeting our needs way beyond our imagining. He delights in hearing our desires and contrary to what you may think, he doesn't always fulfill our desires exactly as we ask, but he has ways of fulfilling them that might just prove to be way more fulfilling in the end. We might think we have to bargain with him, but he reminds us there is no 'bargaining' in this relationship with him - it is open, direct, and free communication. Just a reminder here - he doesn't chase us down to give into our demands. He might just stand there and watch us walk away from our demand. It isn't that he doesn't love us - it is that he loves us too much to give us everything we demand! Just sayin!

I need this soooooo bad!

Have you ever been deprived of something you depend on? We depend on water to renew our bodies, oxygen to keep our cells renewed, and a certain set of vitamins/minerals to help us stay strong. We depend on these things because they are essential to the health and well-being of our body. I remember wrestling with my brother as a kid and being 'deprived' of 'breath' a few times. He is actually eleven years older, so it was never really a "fair" wrestling match whenever we 'went at it', but I loved to be with him! He'd pin me down with his full body weight, tickling me until the tears came, and I would find myself laughing so hard that'd I almost felt like I'd lose my breath at any moment. I'd wriggle harder, trying to escape his clutch. He'd just tickle more! The end of those 'matches' left me so elated, but gasping for breath. I wasn't really being deprived of breath, but it was close!

Don't ever deprive me of truth, not ever—your commandments are what I depend on. Oh, I'll guard with my life what you've revealed to me, guard it now, guard it ever; and I'll stride freely through wide open spaces as I look for your truth and your wisdom; then I'll tell the world what I find, speak out boldly in public, unembarrassed. I cherish your commandments—oh, how I love them—relishing every fragment of your counsel. (Psalm 119:43-48)

I used to think this was like being deprived of air until I actually experienced the total loss of breath for about a minute one day on the softball field. I went up for a fly ball, landing flat on my back - causing the air to be pushed out of my lungs. The force of the blow sent my lungs into a "spasm" of sorts - sports players know this as getting the air knocked out of you. There I lay, struggling to take a breath in, panic beginning to rise with each seemingly never-ending second, pain coursing my body and fear building as I realized I could not take even one breath in. The coach said I was without air for about a minute or two, but not much more. It seemed like an eternity to me, though! Why did I think hours had passed when only minutes had? Why was my coach calm while my response was one of panic? Simply put - perspective! She was still breathing! I wasn't! I was experiencing the pain - she was "coaching" me through! What a difference it makes in how we "interpret" the circumstances based on the perspective we have within those circumstances!

We all depend on air. When we are deprived of it, our body sets off a series of responses designed to help us get air into our bodies. When we cannot manage that because of the circumstances, the adrenaline released begins to send us into that fight or flight response we sometimes equate with panic or struggle. God's truth (his Word) is something we need to learn to equate to much as we equate life to "breath" - so much so that we would not want to be deprived of it! When we learn to depend on it as much as we depend upon breath itself, we have come to the place we value it!
Deprivation is always equated with dependency. We won't feel deprived if we have never developed any dependency toward whatever it is we are dependent upon (or codependent upon). If you have never tasted chocolate, developing a "taste" for it, you won't feel deprived of it when it is not available to you.

Develop a dependency on God's Word and you will find you would guard against something "robbing" you of the regular intake of the Word - regardless of how large or small that thing might be. Not having God's Word to guide our steps, give us strength in times of immense struggle, or to build us up when we fail, it would be like depriving us of air itself. Babies are dependent upon their regular intake of a mother's milk for their development. If they are deprived of it long enough, what do they do? They cry out! Even if we see ourselves as "babes" just taking in God's Word, we want to experience a regular intake! Deprive us of that intake and we begin to feel the effects! It is not long before we begin to cry out! As we grow a little older in our Christian faith, developing the ability to take in "meat", we still depend upon the Word - we just don't need it so "digested" for us to enjoy its intake! Whether babes, toddlers, teen, or mature - we cannot be deprived of that which we need for life. If you take something in long enough, you become dependent upon it. It is in the development of the "habit" of turning to God's Word that we develop a dependency on the counsel contained there. Just sayin!

Seek so as to find delight

The one who seeks good finds delight...(Proverbs 11:27) It is sometimes quite hard for us to differentiate between what we need and what we want. Every now and again, my BFF will tell me someone is a little 'needy' that day - usually because they seem to constantly be requiring some type of intervention from us that usually isn't part of the normal course of the day. Figuring out what it is that we really have "need" of in our lives is a hard thing for some of us, while others seem to hit the nail on the head almost instantly.  We have lots and lots of "wants" that we often confuse as "needs" in our life.  Sometimes it may be something like desiring a better job instead of being grateful for the one we have.  The desire is a "want", while the actual job we have meets the "need". Needs and wants aren't always even all that close - in fact, what we need can be the furthest thing from what it is we want (such as eating a piece of fruit instead of a bowl of ice cream).

We sometimes find ourselves searching for things that have little significance or importance in our lives, but that search captivates our attention, affects our attitude, and even sets us up for a little animosity within relationships. Search basically has three definitions, with the first pointing to this idea of looking into something so carefully or thoroughly with our effort being exerted because we desire to find or discover something.  The idea is this "thoroughness" of examination that we put something (or someone) through before we embrace it (or reject it).  There is a desire to know the "ins and outs" of what it is we are examining - nothing being left that we don't discover in our examination. This type of searching / examining is usually a good thing when we are weighing our options about what type of mattress to buy, or what car will meet our needs while getting good gas mileage. Yet, this type of 'searching' alone is not usually enough - we need to consider two other aspects of the 'search' if we are to understand how we are to differentiate between needs and wants.

There is the need to explore something by inspecting possible places of concealment - because not every need is apparent.  Usually, when we are seeking in this manner it is because we "really" want to find something that we consider important to us - knowing it will be the very thing we need to take care of that need we are experiencing.  It is like when we put something away "so carefully", only to discover that we don't remember where we put it when we need it!  The hunt is on - and we leave no area unexplored until we find the exact thing we need! There are times when the greatest 'inspection' we allow in our lives will help us to discover the true intention or nature behind our needs and actions.  This is probably the most significant part of searching because it moves us from "head knowledge" (knowing something) into a place of "heart knowledge" (knowing why something is the way it is).  This type of searching gets at the root of our need.

As I said, the significance of a need isn't always apparent until the need is felt the greatest. Sometimes the need is conveyed obscurely or indirectly.  In other words, the importance of what it is we are seeking is not always obvious (it may be found only when we "peel back the layers"). There are times we convey something as important in our search, only to find there may arise other things that rise to the level of 'greater importance' in our search.  We often refer to something as "significant" whenever we have elevated that thing or person to a place of importance in our lives. I might not even know I have a plumbing leak until I am in search of that object hidden in the rear of the kitchen cabinet, but when I seek the object, I see the thing with the greater importance. It is quite possible what is important to you may not be as important to me, so this means that significance is determined by how an individual "relates" to something or someone, or the timing of thing that is discovered.

Significant time and effort goes into discovering something that reveals meaning in our lives.  We sometimes refer to something, an event, or an individual as significant because there is meaning conveyed in the contact with that thing, person or event. It is remembered and recounted all that vividly because of the meaning we attach to the thing. There are times when the most 'significant' thing isn't always known to us - but in the course of time, we come to discover the thing we have been given isn't there by chance. There are things in our lives that happen that are purposeful - not just a cosmic event of "chance".  There are people in our lives placed there for a season - not just by "chance", but to fulfill a purpose.  When we begin to realize that the event or the person is not just there "by chance", we begin to explore the event or relationship so as to discover the purpose (the real significance in our lives). In so doing, we begin to see how our 'need' is being met by that which we are discovering.

There is one thing I've discovered in my walk on this earth - if we don't know what it is that we are going after, we will never know if we are successful in our search. If we are aimless, we will hit something, but we seldom hit the target! In order to know what it is we are aiming for, we must know what we are searching for, why this thing / person / event is so important to us at this point in our life, and who is it that we are willing to share this search with?  We are never expected to "seek" alone - nor to always recognize our 'need' on our own. We are given each other for the purpose of walking this journey together. The "search" is on - who is it that you will partner with in this search? Just askin!

This isn't Monopoly

Have you ever struck up a bargain with someone, crafting your "investment" into whatever it is they want out of the deal in order to get out of it exactly what you wanted? I used to play Monopoly with friends when younger and you'd find us in an all out battle to the finish, attempting to persuade each other to let go of that one last railroad, high end property, or utility. We wanted the monopoly so we'd be able to bankrupt anyone landing on that square! The bargaining got somewhat loud on occasion, with an almost 'begging' or 'pleading' tone to it. The pleading was met with firm resistance, no matter how 'broke' that other player was and how much they could use our 'capital' to keep going in the game. They just didn't want to give the other player the satisfaction of doing everybody in as they made their way around to that property block. There are definitely times when a little bargaining isn't really all that bad - like in the playing of the game - but there are times when I think we want to approach God this way. We want to 'make a deal' he cannot refuse - or at least one we think he cannot refuse. We think we know what the specific 'deal-breaker' will be, so we avoid it like the plague. Yet, when it comes right down to it, we just don't believe God isn't in the business of 'wheeling and dealing' - he is in the business of loving, caring, and protecting.

Don’t bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This isn’t a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we’re in. If your child asks for bread, do you trick him with sawdust? If he asks for fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? As bad as you are, you wouldn’t think of such a thing. You’re at least decent to your own children. So don’t you think the God who conceived you in love will be even better? (Matthew 7:7-8 MSG)

God wants us to be direct with him - straight up, spot on, and totally transparent. If I wanted the railroad so I'd have made the monopoly, then I could have just said to my son that I was intending on gathering all of those four blocks and then 'milking' money from him each time he had the unfortunate fate of landing on that square! Instead, I crafted some 'generous' offer that was met with resistance. Why was there resistance? The other player really knew what I was doing no matter how well I crafted my bargain! God isn't going to be fooled by our 'crafty bargaining' - he knows when we want to have something a certain way because it will fit our purposes. We might think we are being clever in how we are wording our requests to him, but he knows the 'back-story' of that plea! If we'd learn to be honest about the 'back-story', we might just find God helping us to see how the story really isn't the one he is writing in our lives - making us more likely to let go of the thing without much hesitation at all.

Honestly, there are more times I don't have a clue what to ask God for in my life, I just know I have a need of some sort. Sometimes I feel lonely and a little down in the mouth. Do I come out and ask God for friends in my life? Nope. I just express my feelings of loneliness and leave things in his hands. Usually in a pretty short order, I begin to see how he has placed special moments in my path that build me up, make me feel cared for and loved, and I am not feeling quite as lonely anymore. I laid out my need the best I could and he did the rest. I didn't formulate the plan for how I expected him to 'fix' my sense of loneliness. I trusted he knew specifically what I needed in that season of my life. Sometimes it was a close friend who'd just minister into my life. At others, it was someone else in need that crossed my path and in meeting their need, my loneliness lessened until I wasn't really feeling all that lonely anymore. This may seem like a lame example of asking God for something in our lives, but in truth, I really finding laying out the specific need is all I need to do - I don't need to outline the 'fix' for the need! Just sayin!

Impotent or Important?

When we were utterly helpless, with no way of escape, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners who had no use for him. Even if we were good, we really wouldn’t expect anyone to die for us, though, of course, that might be barely possible. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. (Romans 5:6-8 TLB)

What would you do for someone who 'under-valued' you, having little to no use for you? Most of us would be honest here and say we'd do very little, if anything at all! Why? We live in a world that expects reciprocity! We look for the 'what's in it for me' situations and that is what we go after more than those 'even if it means nothing for me, I will do it anyway' moments. Honestly, we want to 'get' a little out of whatever we 'put into' something, don't we? This is only natural. It is something quite supernatural to give without any expectation of getting!

Helpless people are really powerless. The helplessness isn't that we lack courage or even the 'want to', but that we lack the power to make something happen. We have been 'incapacitated' - we lack the capacity to do whatever needs to be done. A similar word to helpless is impotent - we are inadequate in completing whatever lays before us. The idea here is that we were unable - there was absolutely no way for us to ever make ourselves right with God again. We were without any way of escape - bound by our sin and shame, linked to our past mistakes and failures.

Now, you would think that someone who lacks the capacity to escape - being held in a place of bondage - would want to be free, wouldn't you? Do you know it is quite possible for someone in bondage to become so 'used to' the bondage that they don't even look for freedom any longer? There might be a niggling of desire now and again, but since the bondage has become so much the 'norm', the motivation to try to be free just isn't there any longer. Maybe this is why scripture points out we had 'no use' for Christ. We just didn't see the purpose of a Savior any longer - we had become resigned to our lack of freedom and just didn't see any way out.

Even those who live 'really good lives' have no real way of escaping the fact they were born sinners. The nature to sin is inherent in our genetic make-up. We will eventually compromise, no matter how 'good' we are. The need for Christ's sacrificial death may not even cross our minds because we are working out our own 'destiny' via our 'good deeds', but the truth is that our own destiny won't even get us close to an eternity in God's presence! We need what we don't even know we need - a Savior. 

It is good news that our eternity isn't limited by what we value or what we can do for ourselves. If we counted on these two things to draw us close to God's heart, we'd still be miles and miles away in the end. Just sayin!

But I want this....

I know Louis L'Amour was not really trying to wax philosophical when he said a good beginning make a good end, but he hit the nail on the head! The roughest beginnings can make for a very bumpy ride alone the way. The easiest beginnings can help us to get along the trail a little quicker, but the trail always has its own twists and turns, making the journey sometimes a little tougher than we first suspected it would be!

God’s way is perfect. The Lord’s promise always proves to be true. He protects those who trust in him. There is no God except the Lord. There is no Rock except our God. God is the one who gives me strength. He clears the path I need to take. He makes my feet as steady as those of a deer. Even on steep mountains he keeps me from falling. (Psalm 18:30-33 TLB)

Despite the beginnings, God's presence can make the journey bearable until it ends! There is no greater beginning than to begin with God - even if the start is a little rough around the edges. Most of us just need to get to the place we actually "start" - we just talk about beginnings and don't ever step up to the gate! Here's something I learned a long, long time ago - we get nowhere if we don't take the first step! We can spend a lot of time "admiring", "imagining", or "dreaming" of what we want to do, but until we actually step out to do it, we are just daydreaming!

God's ways are perfect - even when ours are a little messed up around the edges. His promises will prove true - even when the journey makes it a little unlikely that we will get out 'unchanged' or 'unscathed'. The moment we move from imagining the end and begin to take the steps to trust in what we come to call the beginning, the more we learn how very faithful God is when we place our trust in him.

I don't want you to miss one very important part of our passage today - "He clears the path I need to take." It isn't always the path I want to take. It isn't always the path you want me to take. It is the path which NEEDS to be taken. God knows what we NEED just as much as he knows what we WANT. Those two aren't always the same, are they? I want to be fishing. I need to be at work. I want to eat chocolate. I need to eat an apple. I want to be independently wealthy. I need to work for a living. Yup, those two aren't always the same!

Trust is the basis for any "good beginning" - making the "ending" more likely to be "spot on" for what we need in our life. What or who we trust in is one of the most important things we can establish prior to stepping out. We begin well when we have our trust rightly placed - even though we may not know the ending. We place our trust in a whole lot of dreams and fail to recognize those dreams aren't actually going to keep us for the "long haul" of the journey. The path we need to take may actually be contrary to our dreams - learning to trust God to refine the dreams so the dream matches the need is key to taking the "right" first steps! Just sayin!

The empty roll

And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. 

(Philippians 4:19 NLT)

If you have ever been in the bathroom, looked over at the toilet paper holder, then suddenly come to the realization someone used the last of the white stuff long before your arrival, you know that moment of panic that what you "need" is not at hand! I can recount this one time that my youngest grandson went off to use the facilities and then he just never came back - for a long, long time. When we went to look in on him, my older grandson found him crying fitfully. When he asked why, the simple answer came to light - there wasn't enough toilet paper to finish the job and he didn't know what to do - where to look or who to ask. 

At that moment, the greatest need he had was for just a few more sheets and there were none on the roll. Needless to say, he had no clue there were three extra rolls immediately under the counter in the cabinet! He could only see what was right in front of him, not ever thinking someone would have "prepared" for this very need. We are sometimes like that in much bigger issues in life - only able to see what is right in front of us and not ever thinking the need may have already been supplied.

Our "supply" often gets overshadowed by the "need" we perceive and the "immediacy" by which our supply is at hand. We often don't "go looking" for what we have need of simply because we expected it to be where we always found it in the past. When our supply isn't immediately at hand - in the familiar places we always go to find that need met - we almost panic. Panic has a way of shutting us down to the possibilities that are just outside of those "normal" places we look, though. Panic drives us inward, counting on nothing more than we can calculate or figure out on our own. The issue with panic is that it cuts us off from the supply that has already been prepared in God's foreknowledge of what it is we would need at this very moment.

God isn't going to leave us a breadcrumb trail to our every supply, but he does give us general "patterns" by which he supplies our every need. For example, he reveals some things to us through the simplicity of his Word made alive when we open the Bible and just seek an answer therein. He also sends gentle winds to cause a change in our course just enough to point us in the right direction on occasion. When we don't get the subtle promptings, he might send bigger ones that really get our attention - like an immediate downturn in the market that affects our investments and gets us to look beyond what we are able to accomplish in our own efforts.

The first step to having a need met is to acknowledge we have the need. This is often the hardest steps because it often requires us being humble enough to ask. My grandson didn't want me to discover him sitting in need of some wiping material - he was just at that awkward age of not wanting his grandma to see him without being clothed. So, he sat in worry and anxious panic - thinking he'd never be able to figure this one out. He didn't so much mind it when his older brother came along - which is why I sent him to find out the whereabouts of my little buddy. I knew he needed something, but I didn't want to intrude unless he asked. God isn't going to "intrude" in our lives, but he often sends someone or something into it to open the door to the need being met.

We learn to look beyond our immediate needs being met when we are challenged a little to "look beyond". We can see so much here and now, but until the need becomes urgent and the door is opened for us we don't discover the bounty of what has been "laid up" for our "future need". God might just challenge us now and again with an empty roll, not because he doesn't care about our need, but to help us look beyond what has been our common "go to" to have our need met. Just sayin!

Our hierarchy of needs differ a little

The real motives come from deep within a person—as from deep waters—but a discerning person is able to draw them up and expose them. (Proverbs 20:5 VOICE)

As I came through school, I had to take some courses in behavioral psychology. Let me begin by saying there was not much in the field of psychology which excited me - although mental health is important, it just wasn't the area of science or medicine I had the most interest in, so psychology classes didn't rank high on my list. That was the case until we got into the study of behavior. This one theory caught my attention and captivated my thought for a good deal of the semester. It was the work of Abraham Maslow. Those who are familiar with him know he is most famous for his "hierarchy of needs" theory. In it he outlines five "tiers" of needs, one building upon the other, until all are hopefully met. The thing which caught my attention was how truly difficult it is to have that "top tier" met when all the rest are not. His top tier? It was something he called "Self-Actualization needs - realizing personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences." Self-Actualization is kind of a mystery to me because there isn't much in me that has been able to fulfill any of my dreams or aspirations in quite the same way as when my behavior is motivated by Christ, making those dreams and aspirations "Christ-Actualized".

Maslow postulated the basic of human needs must be met before we can move onto the next level. Those basic human needs include things like food to sustain our bodies, water to maintain the perfect fluid balance, enough rest to renew our bodies, and warmth (or if you live in the desert, I suppose you could say coolness). Maslow taught all human need begins with these four "motivating behaviors" - we must eat, sleep, drink, and feel warmth. There were other "basic" needs he added to this mix, but for sake of this discussion, we will not focus on all of them. When these needs are adequately met, the mind, body, and inner motives of a man turn to meeting the next level of need - that of safety. At this level, the motives of one's heart turn to feeling safe and protected, either because we have laws to keep us safe, or we enjoy a certain sense of "order" in our lives. Jesus told us that man cannot live by bread alone - Maslow used to say that if a man's need for bread was fulfilled, he would move onto ensuring the need for safety, lack of fear, and trust was being met. Jesus said we would find that in "every word of God that proceeded from his mouth". 

To this, Maslow added a man's desire to feel loved and like he "belonged". Jesus said that God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son, so that whosoever believed in him would have this sense of belonging to the family of God. In a natural sense, Maslow said we need relationship with one another - we need to feel needed and wanted. In a spiritual sense, Jesus showed us just how much we are "wanted" - for God did the unthinkable to accomplish our restoration into his family! At this level, when these needs are met, Maslow proposed we move on to feeling like we have achieved something - we move into seeking those things he termed "esteem needs". In this stage of behavior, we are seeking prestige, mastery, status, etc. While achievements are good, nothing quite measures up to what God can and does do within us. It isn't what we do that "achieves" anything in terms of our salvation - it is all Christ in us that does that! While we might not "achieve" salvation, it is the gift of grace provided by Jesus' finished work on the cross, we can move into realms of "mastery" over sin through the power of Christ resident within us.

As stated above, the last stage is that of "self-actualization". While I don't think this is what God has in mind, the theory is one of saying we come to a place of ultimate fulfillment when all the other needs are met. In Christ, our needs are ever being met. There is a continual refilling of each of our "layers" of needs. Each level is met because of something Christ does in us, for us, with us, and along with us. As Maslow postulated, that fifth level was that of feeling one has reached "peak experiences" or "peak performance" in life. I don't think we "peak" alone or in our own power, my friends. It is Christ in us that gets us to the point of feeling like we are at our "peak performance". While Maslow was a great man of science and medicine, he missed Christ in the theory. Self is not able to "actualize" - self is meant to "actualize" to the degree self submits to Christ's influence and purpose within. Just sayin!

Not just another blister

Lee Iacocca once said, "Trouble shared is trouble halved."  I have to say "half of the trouble" is still way more trouble than I really want to bear at any given moment!  It is a nice sentiment to "share" my trouble so I am now only dealing with half the trouble, but it isn't the answer we really need or want. We most likely want someone to carry ALL the trouble away - like the old commercial said, "Calgon, take me away!" We want to "deal" with the trouble by turning it over to someone else entirely, thereby putting the burden to "deal with it" squarely on their shoulders!  Wilma Rudolph said, "When the sun is shining, I can do anything; no mountain is too high, no trouble too difficult to overcome."  I think the truth is really when the SON is shining deeply in our lives, given the right place of priority in our hearts, we CAN do anything - no mountain is grander than we can scale together, no trouble bigger than his ability to overcome.

Let every king on earth bow down before him and every nation be in his service. For he will rescue the needy when they ask for help!  He will save the burdened and come to the aid of those who have no other help.  He offers compassion to the weak and the poor; he will help and protect the lives of the needy!  (Psalm 72:11-13 VOICE)

I like what Teddy Roosevelt said:  "If you could kick the person on the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month."  There is quite a bit of truth to that one, my friends!  Our "trouble" isn't usually someone else's doing - it is rooted in something we were or weren't doing which brought upon us the trouble we are experiencing today.  Yes, there are times when trouble comes our way without us ever doing anything to "get ourselves into that trouble", but in most cases, we are walking right into it without even noticing!

As we make choices in life, decisions which sometimes err on the side of not being the best to those which clearly land in the court of "right on", we don't do it in a vacuum.  We impact the lives of many around us by each and every choice we make and those choices sometimes create a bit more trouble for the "other guy" than we'd like to admit.  The truth is that we ALL stand in need at one time or another - either because of the choices we made, or the impact of the choices of another.  We cannot escape "need" - it is part of living. The issue comes in admitting we "need" anyone else to deal with the issue at hand!

Pride often keeps us from "handing off" those things in life we weren't meant to bear alone.  We try and try again because we just cannot admit to our need.  The only problem with this stubborn determination to bear things all on our own is that we often don't realize the increasing pressure of the burden until it has done damage.  I wore sandals one time to walk around Disneyland.  Now, they were good sandals - the kind you can hike in.  I felt a little rubbing across the top of my foot as we walked and walked from one attraction to another.  I knew there was going to be a blister.  What I wasn't willing to do was admit I needed to shed those sandals!  So, by the end of the day, I was left not with a blister, but a crater of sorts in the top of my foot!

Take a lesson here - the more we "bear with" whatever it is giving us the "rub" in life, the more we are likely to be impacted by that thing!  There are things we just need to "shed" - to be rid of - in order to be free from their further impacting our lives in a negative way.  Those are things we likely call "burdensome" things.  It may be a task way too large for us to handle alone, or the mounting financial troubles we are experiencing.  It doesn't matter what it is, the way out from under the burden is not to "half" it!  It is to squarely rid ourselves of it by placing it on the shoulders of the one who wants to bear it on HIS shoulders.  I haven't worn those sandals again - but I still bear a faint mark as a reminder of wearing them way too long in the first place! Think on that one a little and you will realize we ALL bear things beyond the point we really should.  Just sayin!

Desert dryness and darkness galore

There are times when all we need is a little nudge in the right direction - then we are off and running at full speed.  It is the lack of that "little nudge" which can keep us cemented to our chairs, too.  We are definitely creatures who want "confirmation" of direction before we set out.  There is nothing wrong with this, but there are just times when God expects us to act in obedience, even when we don't feel a "little nudge" to do so!  Over the past couple of weeks, we have explored passages which point to us listening intently, using our common sense to help us in our decision-making, and hearing God's voice in a myriad of ways. There is no "secret" voice of God - he doesn't speak to just a select few - he speaks to all of us.  We just have to learn to recognize when it is we need to wait for his "voice" to become clear to us and when it is we can count on what we already know to be true in our lives to guide us.  Learning the balance between common sense, waiting on God, and "feeling" the little nudge of the Holy Spirit is what we really need to grasp.

You are my God. Show me what you want me to do, and let your gentle Spirit lead me in the right path. (Psalm 143:10 CEV)

David starts this psalm with the words:  "Listen, Lord, as I pray! You are faithful and honest and will answer my prayer."  His heart is seeking God's wisdom in matters he just cannot seem to figure out himself.  There are times when God gives us enough common sense (learning we have accumulated and assimilated into our lives) which can guide us through circumstances.  At other times, we just need to be still long enough to begin to get direction from God.  David recounts this truth in these opening words - for God has been faithful to listen when David shares his heart - honestly appraising David's needs and giving him wisdom on how to proceed.  This should give each of us a little bit of comfort, as well.  As we consider that God is honest with us - appraising what it is we REALLY have need of and then helping us to grasp it - we should take heart that God will not guide us down paths which will bring us harm, or fall short of giving us exactly what we have need of.

If we read on in this chapter, we will see David is at the end of his rope. He is even exhibiting some signs he is a little depressed.  He uses words like "I am in total darkness like one long dead" and "I have given up all hope and feel numb all over".  Now, these aren't very encouraging words to say the least, but I want us to be encouraged by David's honesty and transparency with God.  He is not afraid to let God know how desperate the condition of his mind, emotions, and spirit are at that moment.  He is hurting and God doesn't shrink away from this type of honest communication.  I think there are times we don't bring our hurts and emotional distress to God simply because we think God expects us to rise above them and have our life all together.  We feel "inferior" to what we believe we should be "feeling" at the moment - because somehow we have a belief Christians don't get in the mully-grubs.  To this I can only say, "WRONG!"

He goes on:  "I remember to think about the many things you did in years gone by.   Then I lift my hands in prayer, because my soul is a desert, thirsty for water from you."  Those times when we are the "driest" are the times God wants us to draw the nearest.  Instead of pushing away from him, we need to draw nearer.  When we have a wrong perception of what it is we are to do with our defeated attitudes, lack of hope in the midst of unbearable trials, or our seemingly "done in" sense of loss, we won't bring them to God, but will try to "deal" with them alone.  I have to ask:  "How's that working for you?"  For me, it doesn't!  I just get deeper into my mire!  I don't imagine it is much different for you, either.  So, in order to gain hope when all hope seems to be gone, deal with our feelings of being "numb", and experience refreshing in our times of "desert dryness", we need to bring ourselves squarely into the presence of Jesus.

You know how we do this?  We recount what we know to be true about God! David had a way of doing this - recounting the many blessings of God, his faithfulness, and his interventions in the past.  All helped to refocus him.  In the place of despair and despondency, we don't need "more" of anything - we already possess all we need, we just need to refocus!  We need to turn again to what we know to be true in our lives - turn again to Jesus.  David said, "Each morning let me learn more about your love because I trust you.  I come to you in prayer, asking for your guidance."  He trusted God - plain and simple.  If we trust someone with everything we are, we will lean into that someone with all we've got.  This is the way out of our despondency - leaning!  Too many times we think it is in digging our way out, but in truth, it simply in learning to lean in a little harder.  Just sayin!