How Long To Hope

INTRODUCTION:

Chippie, the parakeet, never saw it coming. He was peacefully perched in his cage singing his heart out to his companion in the mirror. The problems began when Chippie's owner decided to clean Chippie's cage -- with a vacuum cleaner.

She removed the attachment from the end of the hose and stuck it in the cage. The phone rang. She turned to pick it up. She'd barely said 'hello' when 'sssthopp!' Chippie got sucked in.

The bird owner gasped, put down the phone, turned off the vacuum, and opened the bag. There was poor little Chippie—still alive, but stunned. Since the bird was covered with dust and soot, she grabbed him, raced to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and held Chippie under the running water.

Suddenly, realizing that Chippie was soaked and shivering, she did what any compassionate bird owner would do… she reached for the hair dryer and blasted the pet with hot air.

Poor Chippie never knew what hit him.

A few days after the trauma, the reporter who'd initially written about the event contacted Chippie's owner to see how the bird was recovering.

"Well," she replied, "Chippie doesn't sing much anymore. He just sits and stares." (1)

It's hard not to see why. Can you relate to Chippie? Most of us can.

One minute, you're in familiar territory—with a song on your lips, then... The doctor calls. The check bounces. The rejection letter arrives. The divorce papers are delivered. A policeman knocks on your door.

Sssthopp! The life that had been so calm—is now so stormy.

Have you ever found yourself in a life storm? A circumstance where you were completely unprepared? Your safe, secure world broken apart? Have you ever felt forgotten by God? You've known Him; you've sensed His presence; you've experienced His grace; but He seems to have forgotten you.

Have you ever felt that God was avoiding you? Not responding to your needs? Indifferent to your pain? Life has gone from being a joy to being a struggle. You've been trying to be faithful, but it seems that at every turn you are opposed; your efforts are thwarted; your contributions are marginalized. Maybe your heart is broken. Life just seems to get harder. Your relationships seem to be increasingly more difficult. Struggle and suffering have filled your life.

If so, I want to invite you to join me this morning in listening to someone. This man that we are going to listen to, he knows how you feel. More importantly, God knows how you feel. In fact, it was God that inspired David to record his emotions and his experiences, and to preserve his emotions and experiences so that we might encounter the same God he encountered; so that we might find hope and comfort and guidance.

Let's turn our attention to the Psalms… Psalm 13.

BODY:

In this Psalm, we see David on a journey -- a journey that has 3 stages: questions; requests; and declarations.

I. The first stage has to do with QUESTIONS.

At the very outset of this Psalm, we get a glimpse of a suffering soul, but it's not a silent soul.

Verse 1: "How long, O Lord?"

Four times in two verses we hear this plea: How Long? How Long? How Long? How Long? These are the words of a man on the verge of despair. His suffering seems endless. David is weary. What is his cry? How long, O Lord? He is pressing his pain and anguish to his God.

Do you see the little word there — "O Lord?" It's all caps, "LORD." When you see that in your Bibles, that is not the word like a master. It's the name of God. That's YHWH. It's God's personal name to the people He has chosen. That's the name that God revealed to Moses by which God's covenant people would understand God and relate to God and call upon God.

In the midst of his suffering, David’s calling out to his God. The one, the very ONE, who promised to be with His people, always. This is an act of faith. It's turning to the One who promised the help. He is the only one who CAN help. As he turns to God, he pours his deepest thoughts, his deepest anguish, his deepest questions.

Look at verse 1. "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?"

The first question his suffering causes is this: Has God forgotten me?

Have you ever felt that way? You've walked with God; you've known God; you've experienced fellowship with God; you have seen answers to prayer; you've observed fruit in your life that can only be attributed to God; you KNOW God; this is YOUR God. Then something happens. Your relationship changes. You feel forgotten. Have you forgotten me, God? Remember me! Remember me... God! Are you aware of what I'm going through? Do you know how bad it hurts?