I Cry To You (Psalm 88:13-18)

¹³ But I cry to you for help, Lord;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
¹⁴ Why, Lord, do you reject me
and hide your face from me?

¹⁵ From my youth I have suffered and been close to death;
I have borne your terrors and am in despair.
¹⁶ Your wrath has swept over me;
your terrors have destroyed me.
¹⁷ All day long they surround me like a flood;
they have completely engulfed me.
¹⁸ You have taken from me friend and neighbor—
darkness is my closest friend.

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What is striking in the conclusion of this dark psalm is that in verse 13, the psalmist continues to cry out to the Lord.  Even though he believes that the Lord is responsible for his trouble, and that he has been rejected by the Lord, still he calls out to him every morning for help.

This psalm is a call to perseverance and faith in the middle of hard times.  The psalmist is modeling the faithfulness to which we are called even when it seems that all is lost.  We can see this same perseverance in Jesus on the cross when he quotes the beginning of Psalm 22.  Even though in his crushed humanity he feels abandoned by God, still He cries out to Him.

God would have us reach out to Him and call upon Him even when the circumstances of life would suggest that He is not listening.  Because He is.  Easter follows Good Friday every time.   Despite the feeling of rejection and lostness, God is with the psalmist in the pit.

So my prayer today is for those who feel themselves to be in the depths of despair. I pray that the Lord reveal Himself to them and empower them to cling to Him as He clings to them.  I pray that they will find strength in the hope that Easter will follow Good Friday.

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