What to do when God forsakes you

I thought I would include some thoughts from my last message. These notes are not complete but may give you some thoughts to ponder.

When you are forsaken, alone, and afflicted speak your mind to God.

Jeremiah 20:7-18 contains one of the complaints of Jeremiah to God.

"Yahweh, you have seduced me, and I fell for it, you have overpowered me, and you have won. I have become a perpetual laughable clown, everybody mocks me. Whenever I speak up and cry out I feel compelled to shout, 'Bloody murder!'“ And all I get for my God-warnings are insults and contempt."

Notice that Jeremiah does not hold back from God his thoughts and what is going on inside of him, he speaks his mind to God. Often we feel one way but express to God in our prayers and words something entirely different.
Notice also the results of this complaint:

• He becomes aware of God's indwelling Word
• He becomes aware of God's presence
• He becomes aware of God's victory over the situation
• He is able to worship God even while in despair

When you are forsaken, alone, and afflicted acknowledge your spiritual thirst, remember God, the times of worship, and His Word.

Psalm 42 is a moving example of one that feels isolated from God, forsaken by God. Look at verses 9 & 10.

I will say to God ,my Rock, "Why did you forget me? Why must I be so sad? You let my enemy do what he likes to me!" My enemies hurt all my bones. The people that fight me are always saying, "Where is your God?"

If you start back at verse one you will find the writer acknowledging his spiritual thirst. I hear the same story often, of one hurt or wounded by church, religion, even God, who choose to turn away, to walk away from God, never to return. I am certain that in every case, if truly a believer, then God calls to them to return and the believer has a longing for Him. However, if not acknowledged, this thirst, the relationship will slowly die. I do not mean in a salvation sense, for I do stand on eternal security, but in a living sense.

Also notice that this writer, either a hostage or one in exile, purposely remembers God and His person, where and how he had once worshipped Him, and uses repetition of praise to heal his situation. You can see this repetition in verses 5, 11, and 43:5. (At one time 42 & 43 were probably joined as one Psalm.)

Why am I so depressed? Why is this turmoil within me? Put your hope in God, for I will still praise Him, my savior and my God.

When you are forsaken, alone, and afflicted understand that sometimes only death brings an end to the matter. Consider Psalm 102:1-6.

God, listen! Listen to my prayer, listen to the pain in my cries. Don't turn your back on me just when I need you so desperately. Pay attention! This is a cry for help! And hurry—this can't wait! I'm wasting away to nothing, I'm burning up with fever. I'm a ghost of my former self, half-consumed already by terminal illness. My jaws ache from gritting my teeth; I'm nothing but skin and bones. I'm like a buzzard in the desert, a crow perched on the rubble.

In real life the boy does not always get the girl, the cowboy does not always ride off into the sunset, and all our problems do not resolve themselves in a positive manner.
Look over this Psalm and see the finality of the writer's words, especially in relationship to the eternity of God. I makes me think of 2 Cor 4:16-18, that our problems are light and momentary in relationship to the eternity we will spend in heaven with Him. Unfortunately, the writer of 102 only hints at such and, at least for me, does not bring into his words a strong 2 Cor 4 type conclusion. Thus it is true, only death will bring an end to some matters, either you will die or the problem will die.

Is there then no hope? Of course there is great hope. Look at Hebrews 11:35-40. Here we have the "others," those that did not have a happy ending while on earth. The promise granted was not delivered until Christ. I do not want to include too many words in this writing so I will just ask you to look at Heb 10:14 & 12:23. As you do, if you are a believer in Christ then celebrate these great words in praise to our King!

Is there then no hope? Well the title of this blog, What to do when God forsake you, is a misnomer, for Heb 13:5-6 states, "for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." So then the believer will never be forsaken by God. What do we then make of Jeremiah and the authors of Psalms 42 & 102? They were never forsaken by Him, they only felt like it. When God is silent in our times of trouble it seems to us that He has forgotten us. But rest assured He is there and He loves you.

-Mark