Psalms of Comfort 22: God’s Comfort

Psalm 23

4 Even if I walk through a very dark valley, I will not be afraid, because you are with me.
Your rod and your shepherd’s staff comfort me.

It’s a new month so I think we will depart from our theme of considering Gods peace and turn to the shepherd for the month of May. Loosely based upon Max Lucados 30 day devotional in his book ‘safe in the shepherds arms’. We will be staying in the psalms and beginning in that icon of pastoral care, psalm 23, The Lord is my shepherd.

Last Sunday my sermon was entitled comfort in the valley and focused primarily on the this verse from psalm 23. This Sunday I will be focusing on Psalm 13, ‘the how long psalm’. The psalmist is in the valley and is confounded by his feeling of Gods absence while he cries out in fear of being swamped by his despair. He says repeatedly ‘How long’ Lord until you show yourself.

We might say the same to God in our present Covid-19 valley. How long until you show yourself, how long until you rescue us?

Have you ever been awoken from a deep sleep by someone standing over you, calling your name? Maybe it’s a dream you are in and you are gently being woken up from it into the bright light of the day by the person that’s waking you up. Perhaps God is trying to awaken you from your slumber, perhaps he is answering these questions you are asking, but maybe you would prefer to stay asleep. The psalmists experience is that no matter the feeling of darkness that surrounds him, no matter the danger, no matter Gods seeming absence, God will be there to take us through it, teach us and comfort us.

Where is God when it hurts? the deeper the hurt, the deeper the question and the deeper our sense of our own helplessness and our need of God.

There is a lovely song which came to mind by Al Gordon produced for tearfund, and it begins with the repeating lyric:

“How Long, until we gaze upon your face, gaze upon your face, gaze upon your face,
Jesus, we will gaze upon your face, in the morning light.”

Wake up to Jesus, let him be your comfort. He still speaks, he still comes and he still comforts.
Lord Jesus increase our awareness of your presence and be our comfort and our inspiration today, awaken us to your love and to the blessings you bestow upon us. Amen