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Posted by David Kitz for “I Love the Psalms” @ https://davidkitz.wordpress.com/
Original post found @ https://davidkitz.blog/2023/11/21/growing-weak-and-withering-away/
Growing Weak and Withering Away
Posted by davidkitz in Psalm 102
Tags despair, cancer, bad news, trust in God, hopelessness
Reading: Psalm 102:1-11
A prayer of an afflicted person who has grown weak
and pours out a lament before the LORD.
Hear my prayer, LORD; let my cry for help come to you.
Do not hide your face from me when I am in distress.
Turn your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly.
For my days vanish like smoke;
my bones burn like glowing embers.
My heart is blighted and withered like grass;
I forget to eat my food.
In my distress I groan aloud and am reduced to skin and bones.
I am like a desert owl,
like an owl among the ruins.
I lie awake; I have become like a bird alone on a roof.
All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who rail against me use my name as a curse.
For I eat ashes as my food
and mingle my drink with tears
because of your great wrath,
for you have taken me up and thrown me aside.
My days are like the evening shadow;
I wither away like grass (NIV). *
The birth of Christ is one of the most amazing events in human history. God came to serve us and to provide us the way to forgiveness. He…
Gatineau & Ottawa from the Chief William Commanda Bridge — photo by David Kitz
Reflection
If you have watched a friend or family member wither away due to the devastating effects of cancer, then you should have no difficulty identifying with the thoughts expressed here in this psalm. An enemy (cancer) is gnawing away at their very being. A sense of hopelessness and despair can easily settle in.
This is when we need God the most, but in our distress, He can seem strangely distant. Our cries seem to fall on deaf ears.
But…
But God is still there. Our faith may be shaken, but our LORD remains. Death may come knocking, but our LORD remains. Friends and family may forsake us, but Jesus remains by our side. Bad news does not take God by surprise. Though He is not the author of the bad news, our Lord knows what’s coming around the next bend in the road. He is prepared though we may not be. The Lord’s provisions are in place. Trust Him for that.
When the bottom falls out of your life, God is there to catch you. Trust Him. Though I may wither away like grass, I have a Savior who will receive me. Trust Him for that.
Response: Father God, when bad news comes, I look to you. I call to you! Be my help when all human help and hope are gone. Lord Jesus, you are my Savior. In this—moment I trust you for that! Amen.
Your Turn: Have you received bad news recently? Have you taken it all to the Lord? How has your faith in God sustained you in difficult times?
* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA
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P.S. (from bruce) When there is no other place to turn…turn to God !! If you’re not a “born again” Christian, is the Holy Spirit urging you to open this link ?? Here is the truth about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through understanding and obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ… https://godsmanforever.com
To my brothers and sisters in Christ, please feel free to share this message of the cross with those in need…
You say you are a “born again” believer… BUT is your soul “ON FIRE” for the Lord ?? If not, open this link – https://godsmanforever.com/2020/08/01/are-you-a-christian-in-gods-eyes-and-on-fire-for-the-lord-or-not/
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