Psalm 4, 16, 63
Memory Verse: Psalm 16:11 - “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
Song: Great is Thy Faithfulness - Shane & Shane
We live in a culture of want. Our society has trained us to think, “The grass is always greener,” there’s always “the next best thing,” and “better than ever” means you’re missing out if you don’t have the newest version. Aside from material things, we’ve also been told we are missing something if we don’t have the ideal friendships, the ideal marriage, the ideal family, etc. If we could just chase after and catch these things, THEN we would reach our peak of happiness and joy. Labeling something as “ideal” disregards the darkness that exists in this world and affects all of these things that we find ourselves, hoping to be perfect. The last couple of years, in particular, have made me aware of some of the “ideals” that so easily can be tainted by the darkness around us. Friends who celebrate pregnancy just to miscarry ten weeks later. Friends who find their “soulmate” just to be signing divorce papers a few years into their marriage. Friends who start their long-awaited college experience just to be considering dropping out three semesters in. Becoming a mom but experiencing postpartum depression has made it impossible to be the “ideal” mom I always thought I would be. We imagine that we need all of these things to chase after joy and happiness in this life, but then we are quickly disappointed when the inevitable darkness seeps in, and our expectations aren’t met.
David points us back to the joy that is rooted in our salvation. He repeatedly compares the things of this life that leave his soul “thirsting” to the presence of the Lord, where he finds the FULLNESS of his joy. It’s the worldly versus the eternal—the fleeting versus the everlasting, the temporary versus the permanent.
David isn’t saying all this while he sits in a field of flowers without a care. No, the darkness is very evident to David. He recognizes the sin of the people around him and is directly affected by it as he asks for safety from his enemies. As believers, we must remember that just because we have salvation in Christ doesn’t mean our lives are worry-free. Or that when we pray to God and ask Him to answer, it doesn’t mean we can ask for just anything and expect the Lord to give it. David acknowledges that God is the one to quench his eternal thirst. God is the one who gives him the highest joy; all the while, David knows that others are dining on the finest wine and feasting on the most excellent food. We see David praise the Lord in the midst of his struggle by remembering the things God has done for him. He has been the help, safety, and council David needed. He KNOWS the Lord and is confident of His character. What David asks for is not for his own glory but rather for the glory of the Lord. This is how we know that what we ask aligns with God’s will. And when we ask of God according to His will, it delights Him! He is so willing to give these things because he knows it will provide the FULLEST of joy. And when He doesn’t give, it’s not because He doesn’t love us. It’s just the opposite. He loves us so much that He knows those things are not the best, and He has something immeasurably better in store.
So, because we believe in the Gospel that God sent his son to live a perfect life and die a sinless death, we rejoice! We can rest in safety and confidence knowing that because He is GOD, the creator of the universe, the author of life itself, HE knows what we need. He sustains our souls amidst the darkness, and if we know him and his character and ask through the lens of who he is, he is so happy to provide for us what we need. How gracious a gift.
In this season, when it becomes easy to want and look toward the next best thing, remember that God knew what you needed in his Son even before you existed. God knew the darkness that his Son would endure and knew the pain that Jesus would experience. God knew that His son would defeat death so that we would get to experience matchless JOY when we sit in the light of His presence and remember that He is enough.
