FINDING GOD IN YOUR DEVASTATION
PS 63
I. IMAGINE THIS SITUATION
You are startled in the middle of the night with the ringing of your phone. Your heart is pounding as you think “Something must be awfully wrong. On the other end of the phone is the familiar voice of a trusted family friend.
His voice is frantic. He tells you your adult son is coming over with some of his gang members to kill you. You must get out immediately.
The sad thing is you are not totally surprised. You have been estranged from this son. You have not spoken to him for several years because He has as murdered another of your sons his half-brother. He had killed him in revenge because your son had raped their sister your daughter. This son was always a hot-head growing up, prone to violence.
You really believe he is coming in anger and hatred to murder you. You jump out of bed and grab your car keys, jump in the car and get out of there as fast as you can.
No wallet, no credit cards, no cash, only the clothes on your back.
You cannot go to another family members house because you do not want to put them in danger.
You have already been to the police and they said they could not do anything until he actually does something.
G. Your mind is racing, you are frantic—what do you do where do you go? You are so tired you pull into a rest area to get some rest.
H. In that moment of quietness—your situation comes crashing down on you!
I. What a shambles your life is in!
1.You have had a daughter raped by her half-brother
2. You have had a son murdered by his own half-brother.
3. This son is out to kill you!
4. You think, “God, where did I go wrong?”
5. Then it hits you—you started this chain of reactions by that affair you had years ago.
6, You opened the door for sin to ravage your family.
7. Much of the blame falls at your doorstep!
J. How would you feel?
1. Devastated?
2. Suicidal?
K. Do you think you could find any soul satisfaction in God at that moment?
1. What would you think if I said—not only could you but I will show you exactly how you could!
2. I know you could because King David found soul satisfaction in just this situation.
3. The how is found in our Ps 63.
READ PS 63
II. WE ALL GO THROUGH DEVASTATING TIMES (1-2)
The background for this Ps is David’s tragic life.
1. He wrote this psalm as he was fleeing from his son Absalom was seeking to murder him and take over his kingdom.
2. When David committed adultery with Bathsheba, he opened the door for sin to ravage his family—and it did.
3. His son Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar
4. Absalom in revenge for his sister’s rape killed Amnon.
5. For years David banished him and refused to forgive him or speak to him.
6. Now Absalom has gathered an army and is out to kill his father David and take over his kingdom.
7. David flees for his life—not knowing if he will lose everything—even his life.
B. David describes his devastation. (1-2)
1. He is thirsty for God!
*There is a deep longing in his soul.
*There is an aching.
*He is hurting—crying.
—his own son wants to murder him
—to take over his kingdom
*Like a man stranded in the desert—dying of thirst, David thirst for God.
2. He yearns for God.
*He longs for God
*There is a deep longing in his soul for God
*His life is falling apart
*he is fleeing as a fugitive for his life
*He says “O, God, You are my God, I seek you earnestly, I long for you.”
3. David is spiritually dry and weary—
“In a dry and weary land where there is no water.”
*As David looks out over the barren, desolate, dry Judean Wilderness—he thinks “That’s what my soul is like.”
*”God, I am dying here”
*My soul is dry
*I am weary—tired—ready to quit!
*Have you noticed in some of our most devastating times we feel spiritually dry?
Illus. My Dad’s death—could not feel God anywhere
Like my prayers were not going anywhere!
4. David was devastated—He was lonely, longing for a sense of God.
B. We all experience times of devastation.
1. Hopefully no one here has experienced the devastation David did.
2.Yet, we have all experience a measure of devastation.
*at the death of a loved one—parent—spouse—death of a child
*break up of a marriage/home
*loss of a job
*health—find out we have some awful disease
*child’s sinful behavior
*all of these leave us devastated!
3. We like David find ourselves in a spiritually dry and weary land, DEVASTATED— LONGING FOR GOD’S PRESENCE.
4. Yet, David found God and soul satisfaction in his devastation—so can we.
II. YOU CAN GAIN SOUL SATISFACTION THROUGH FOCUSING ON GOD. (5-6)
*We must take our eyes off our situation and focus on God.
David’s satisfaction came when he took time to focus on God. (6)
When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches,
1. David uses the words “remember” and “meditate” to describe focusing on God.
2. We would use the words “ponder” or “mull over something” or “contemplate” or if your are a true southerner you might say “let me study on that for a while.”
3. We are talking about thinking about God, spending time pondering God, concentrating on God.
4. No matter what word you use the idea is the same—you focus on God not on your situation!
B. David focused on God during the night.
1. Have you noticed how everything seems worse at night?
*pain is always worse at night
Illus. My knee surgery—your back pain
2. Our emotional pain and our problems also seems worse at night.
Illus. How many of us have not been able to go to sleep because a problem worried us so much, or seemed so overwhelming or you woke up in the middle of the night and were unable to go back to sleep.
*lose your job
*waiting for the biopsy results
*finally you drifted off to sleep
*when you woke up the next morning—it did not seem near as bad
3. David took advantage of these nighttime moments to focus on God.
*He would turn his thoughts to God.
*He would turn his thoughts from his devastation and focus on God.
C. When David focused on God, he found true soul satisfaction Ps 63:5
My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
1. David is drawing a comparison between the satisfaction we feel when we have eaten a great meal and soul satisfaction in God.
2. We all have had numerous occasions when we were starving
*You go to someone’s house to eat—you are hungry when you get there and its another hour before you eat
*they are sitting around talking and you are starving
Illus. Me at David Roper’s house
3. Finally you sit down to this great meal—you eat and are satisfied!
*That good feeling you have-
*good food, good fellowship, things just seem better!
4.That’s the feeling David has in mind.
*He found spiritual satisfaction—contentment
*It made him want to praise God!
Illus. Just like you after that great meal
*You praise the cook!
*This was a great meal!
*That steak was cooked just right!
5.David praised God!
REVIEW:
1. WE ALL EXPERIENCE TIMES OF DEVASTATION. David did—we do.
2. EVEN IN THESE TIMES OF DEVASTATION WE CAN FIND SOUL SATISFACTION THROUGH FOCUSING ON GOD.
David did—so can we!
3. WHAT ABOUT GOD DID DAVID FOCUS ON?
III. WE SHOULD FOCUS ON THESE THINGS
A.Focus on what God has done for you. (2)
Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory.
1. David remembers the rich times he had with God.
* He had enjoyed close fellowship with God.
* He had seen God’s power and glory!
*When he had defeated Goliath!
2. You need to focus on what God had done for you!
*rich times you have had with Him —when He poured His love over you
*difficulties he brought you through
*sickness? Job lose? Death of loved one?
*God was there for you!
3. Focus on these times.
B. Focus on God’s lovingkindness (3-4)
Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You. 4 So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.
1. David focused on God’s covenant love—His lovingkindness
*God had entered into a covenant with him
*God had a commitment to keep that covenant
*God lovingly and joyously keeps the covenant
*God is personally involved in his life.
*This is better than life--
—he would not want to live without this relationship with God.
2. You must focus on God’s covenant love for you!
*He will not abandon you
*He will not forsake or desert you
*He has entered into a covenant with you and He will never leave you.
*He is at work in your situation even tho you cannot see Him or feel Him.
3. Focus on God’s lovingkindness to you!
C. Focus on God as your Help. (7)
For You have been my help, And in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.
God had delivered David out of many dangerous situations.
*lion and the bear
*Saul throwing the spear at him
*Saul sending men to his house to kill him
*one trapped on a mountain—Saul’s men were closing in on him and suddenly they get word the Philistines had attacked—they leave and David escapes
*David ponders these times God has been his help!
*Even tho Absalom is out to kill him, He will get under God’s wings and sing for joy!
2. You must focus on God as your Help.
*think about the times God has helped you through difficulties
*God was your Help then—He is your Help now
D. Focus on God as your Sustainer (8)
My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.
1. David held on to God for dear life—but it was God who held him!
*David knew his soul was prone to wander
*he was tired, weary, wanting to give up and quit
*He knew it was God who kept him faithful
*He did all he could to hang on to God but he knew it did not depend on his strength
*It was God who upheld him
2. Focus on God as your sustainer.
*He is the one you keeps you faithful!
*You may feel overwhelmed, weary, tired, ready to give up
*You may not think you can keep going...
*God will not let you go!
*He will not drop you!
*He will sustain you!
*We cling to God, but even if we let go—He holds us tight!
3. Focus on God as the One who will uphold you in this devastation.
E. Focus on God as your Protector (9-11)
But those who seek my life to destroy it, Will go into the depths of the earth. 10 They will be delivered over to the power of the sword; They will be a prey for foxes. 11 But the king will rejoice in God; Everyone who swears by Him will glory, For the mouths of those who speak lies will be stopped
1.David focused on God as his protector.
*he knew God would keep him safe
*God would protect his life and his reputation!
*David had years earlier penned these words
Ps 46:1
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
*Now as Absalom was seeking his life, he would focus on this truth!
2.You must focus on God as your Protector!
*He is your spiritual protector!
*satan is out to get you but God is your protector
*You may feel under great spiritual attack—flee to God as your protector
*Focus on Him—He is your Refuge—Mighty Fortress
IV. You WILL EXPERIENCE TIMES OF DEVASTATION
A. When YOU do, YOU can find the soul satisfaction YOU long for by focusing on God!
B. Maybe it will be in the middle of the night!
1.But YOU need to get alone with God and remember, ponder
*The things He has done for YOU
*His lovingkindness toward YOU
*God has your Helper
*God has your Sustainer
*God has your Protector!
Illus. Hudson Taylor—pioneer missionary to China in 1800’s
He knew what it was to experience devastation on the mission field
*one time in particular occurred just after the birth of his son
*his wife got cholera and was so sick she could not nurse their newborn son
*after one week the little boy died
—imagine mothers how she felt knowing her son had died because she could not nurse him
—they were both devastated
*Mrs. Taylor devastated by the death of their son and stricken with cholera got weaker and weaker
*with in a few weeks Hudson Taylor had to not only say goodbye to his son but his wife as well
*These two deaths left him devastated!
He wrote his mother “ God and God only knew what my dear wife was to me. He knew how the light of my eyes and he joy of my heart were in her.”
Soon after than Hudson became sick and was confined to his room. He wrote in his journal “How lonesome were the weary hours confined to my room. How I missed my dear wife and the voices of the children far away in England. Then I understood why the Lord had made that passage so real to me. “Whoever drinks of the water that I give him shall never thirst.” 20 times a day, perhaps, as I felt the heart-thirsting coming back, I cried to Him, “Lord, you promised! You promised me that I should never thirst.”
And whenever I called by day or by night, how quickly He came and satisfied my sorrowing heart!
—David found soul satisfaction during his devastation by focusing on God.
—Hudson Taylor found soul satisfaction during his devastation by focusing on God.
—You can find soul satisfaction during your devastation by focusing on God.
