Crushed Expectations

Crushed Expectations Text: Psalm 6:1-7

O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure. 2 Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am weak; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are troubled.3 My soul also is greatly troubled; But You, O LORD—how long? 4 Return, O LORD, deliver me! Oh, save me for Your mercies’ sake. 5 For in death there is no remembrance of You; In the grave who will give You thanks? 6 I am weary with my groaning; All night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears. 7 My eye wastes away because of grief; It grows old because of all my enemies.

In Psalm 6, David was a weeping prophet. This Psalm is one of his lamentations: either it was penned in a time, or at least calculated for a time, of great trouble, both outward and inward! In the book of James he writes, “Is any afflicted? Is any sick? Let him sing this Psalm.” The Psalmist David experienced hopeless despair as he struggled with his own failures, the attacks of others, and the disappointments of life.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30TM Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly."

Three things the psalmist complained of: 1. Sickness of body. 2. Trouble of mind, arising from the sense of sin. 3. The insults of his enemies.

David Pours out His complaints before God. (He’s on speaking terms with God.) There’s hope.

Just as David dealt with pain and disappointment Paul expresses his in II Corinthians 12: 7-10 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. ( I just explained these verses for the sake of time.)

II Corinthians 1:8 For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life.

How many of you remember those famous words of Shakespeare? “To be or not to be- that is the question!” ( To live or, to take my own life.) That’s the question. Shakespeare’s character Hamlet, who speaks these lines, learns that his uncle has killed his father and married his mother! ( This terrible truth drives Hamlet to comtemplate suicide.)

Paul is saying that his persecution in Asia was so intense he despaired even of life! Instead of becoming overwhelmed Paul learned to trust God! Listen to I Corinthians 1:9-10 Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead,10 who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us,

Suffering is part of the human experience; However, we never suffer in vain! Our wounds can be a source of comfort for others through the power of God!

Recording artist James Taylor exploded onto the music scene in early 1970 with the song “Fire and Rain.” In it, he talked about the disappointments of life, describing them as “sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground.” That was a reference to Taylor’s original band Flying Machine, whose attempt at breaking into the recording industry had failed badly, causing him to wonder if his dreams of a musical career would ever come true. However James Taylor continued, and the rest is history!

In Psalm 6, The depth of David’s sorrow and loss drove him to heartache-but in his grief he turned to the God of all comfort.