HoHum:
Gloom, despair, and agony on me; Deep, dark depression, excessive misery; If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all; Gloom, despair, and agony on me
WBTU:
Started studying on depression and went to Psalm 88. Psalm 88 has been called the most melancholy of all the psalms. One person said that it is for the mature. I agree. Since we have the mature here tonight you get gloom, despair and agony on me.
This Psalm provides a vivid picture of suffering, depression, and loneliness. Unlike the other psalms of lament, this psalm does not end on a positive note. Instead it concludes with the observation, “The darkness is my closest friend.”
Why was this psalmist (Heman, not sure who he was) so full of trouble that he cried day and night (vs. 1)? Heman grieved two losses:
1. Heman believed that he was near death. Vs. 3- “My life draws near the grave.” Vs. 5- Set apart with the dead. On his deathbed, he felt “confined and unable to escape- vs. 8”. His eyes are dim with grief- vs. 9. He was grieving the loss of his health
2. Heman was lonely. Even his closest friends stayed away, unable or unwilling to spend time with him in his time of need. “You have taken from me my closest friends and have made me repulsive to them.” Psalms 88:8, NIV. “You have taken my companions and loved ones from me” Psalms 88:18, NIV. The hospital is a hard place to visit. The smell of the hospital and the sight of the patient in such crisis, no one is able to do anything but watch. Some do not visit because it reminds them of their own mortality. Some have speculated that Heman had leprosy and this would explain his situation even more. Some loved ones would come and be with him but they cannot because the law said that the leper must be away from everyone and cry “Unclean,” when people did come around. Friends and family would not want to break the law and worse they would not want to contract leprosy so Heman is dying alone.
Elizabeth Kubler Ross in her famous book, “On death and dying,” identified the stages of grief. Shock, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance. We see 3 of these stages here in Psalm 88:
1. Anger aimed at God. “You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Your wrath lies heavily upon me; you have overwhelmed me with all your waves.” Psalms 88:6, 7, NIV. We can almost see his finger shaking angrily at the heavens; feel his body shaking with frustration at God?
2. Bargaining. “Do you show your wonders to the dead? Do those who are dead rise up and praise you? Is your love declared in the grave, your faithfulness in Destruction? Are your wonders known in the place of darkness, or your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?” Psalms 88:10-12, NIV. In other words, come on, God. I’m ready to praise you, to declare your wonders. I can’t do this if I die, so let me live and I’ll show you what a life of worship looks like.
3. Depression in vs. 13-18. It is all consuming- in the morning (vs. 13), all day long (vs. 17), in the darkness (vs. 18). Notice this description of constant suffering- rejection (vs. 14), affliction (vs. 15), an engulfing flood (vs. 17). He is focused on this question, “Why, O LORD, do you reject me and hide your face from me?” Psalms 88:14, NIV. Often the question we ask most, “Why?”
Thesis: What can we learn from a psalm without a happy ending?
For instances:
We need to listen to those who are suffering, to the depressed, to the grieving
There are times when we should say nothing just be a listener. Just listening when someone is angry or upset is hard. The natural response is to become defensive. Maybe had that response when I was reading this psalm. Just listening when someone is down and discouraged is difficult. However, there are times when we should stay with the feeling that is being expressed and simply be quiet and listen. For those who have depressed and chronically afflicted people in our lives, this psalm reminds us that there are times when people need to vent and lament and just be heard. It is freeing for comforters to remember that if it’s good enough for God just to be quiet and listen to this psalm, then it’s good for us to just be quiet and listen too. People who feel the way the psalmist felt will tell us that one of the best gifts we can give is a listening ear.
Sad, grieving people do not need explanations for what we think is wrong in their lives. They don’t need solutation for what we pereive to be their problems. They don’t need advice based on what has worked for us in a difficult but different situation. They don’t need impatience with their slow progress or even backsliding. They don’t need relentless optimism, which only makes their despair worse. The natural response is to say something encouraging, to point out something positive. We want to say something helpful but there are no magic words. Just Listen!
We need to go to God in our suffering and loneliness
This appears to be a private psalm directed not to the masses but to God himself. “Day and night I cry out before you” vs. 1, “May my prayer come before you” vs. 2. Heman expressed his disappointment and confusion, but he didn’t complain to others. Good advice for the hurting and lonely. Helpful to talk to others about our troubles, but the only one who can change our sitatuion is God. He should always be the first to hear from us.
We need to tell God how we honestly feel
The psalmist wasn’t disrespectful; he was honest. He didn’t understand the pain and loneliness he felt, and there was no point trying to hide his hurt from the God who knows everything. It is not wrong to say to God, “This doesn’t seem fair.” “I don’t understand.” “I wish this never happened.” God already knows how we feel and we need to be honest (and respectful) when we come to him with our problems. The Holy Spirit is the editor of the Bible and if God didn't want this in here he would have taken it out. Have a hard time with critical letters, most of the time throw them away. Here we have God keeping a critical letter. We can tell God how we honestly feel.
This psalm encourages us to persevere
Day and night I cry out- vs. 1. I call to you, O Lord, every day- vs. 9. I cry to you for help, O Lord- vs. 13. In spite of his doubts and questions, Heman continued to pray to God no matter what came his way. His soul was full of trouble, but he kept praying. His eyes were dim with grief, but he continued to seek the Lord. He felt rejected and alone, but he never stopped crying out to God for help.
We may feel like giving up when our prayers are not answered quickly. We may think our pleas are ineffective, that God isn’t listening. However, we have no idea what God is doing in the background, no concept of how God’s plan is unfolding for our benefit. This is where trust comes in. This is where we exercise a simple faith that says, “Lord, I don’t know what’s going on here, but I’m counting on you to come through for me.”
Always darkest before the dawn
This psalm is disturbing because Heman has doubts about his eternal salvation. I am counted among those who go down to the pit- vs. 4. I will soon be “cut off from your care” vs. 5. “You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths.” Psalms 88:6, NIV. “I have suffered your terrors and am in despair. Your wrath has swept over me; your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me.” Psalms 88:15-17, NIV. Sounds like he is unsure what will happen to him after death.
This happens can happen even with a person who was strong in the faith. When they realize they will die soon, they go through life review and come to the conclusion that they will not make it to heaven based on their good works, their righteous life. Their conclusion is right! The darkness may be Heman’s closest friend, but this makes us want to find a friend who is all light, or celebrate the Friend who is the Light. As an authentic expression of suffering in our broken world, it has the power to drive us into God’s arms, into each other’s hearts, and into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.
This psalm is evangelistic. In showing us what it is like, as the apostle Paul says, “to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.” This opens our hearts to finding hope, comfort, strength and joy in the promise that “Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord for ever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18, NIV.
Reminds us that we are in God’s care
This psalm is full of darkenss but it has a happy beginning. Before the Psalmist starts his long lament, he begins with “O Lord, the God who saves me.” Behind every complaint, every question, every sad note of this psalm is the understanding that God is still in charge and that he saves.
We can have the same confidence, even when there is no happy ending in sight.
