Psalms In The Night

Give light, and the darkness will disappear of itself.
- Desiderius Erasmus

Psalms In The Night…

With so many wonderful Biblical promises and powerful examples of God's interaction with mankind, see Psalms of Delight, Psalms in the Night are a way of exploring and sharing some of the difficult and challenging thoughts, feelings and experiences God's people encounter while endeavoring to fully enjoy His presence and power, protection and provision. In ever more genuine and meaningful ways. For themselves and their children, family and friends.

Psalms in the Night are written in concert with Psalms of Delight. Both series contain Modern Psalms meant to comfort and inspire those seeking the Omni-God revealed in Scripture.

Modern Psalms In The Night Summary

The Psalms of Scripture are amazing on many levels. Beyond their continued relevance as inspiration and revelation, each stands as a bastion of truth and light against the growing darkness of temptation and deception. Modern Psalms in the Night are offered in the same tradition. Given some of the more dramatic passages found in Biblical Psalms, their original use as public worship songs is interesting. It's hard to imagine singing Psalms 22 in its entirety as worship chorus. This raises an interesting question. If such Psalms were for public use, what might the composers private prayers and worship have been like?

This is the message God has given us to pass on to you: that God is Light and in him is no darkness at all.

- 1 John 1:5 TLB

Psalms in the Night

Written to express modern dilemmas, Psalms in the Night are meant as prayers of faith and hope when both may be in ever shortening supply.

A work in progress, this labor of love is being developed to reveal the common bond people of faith share in a world full of doubt. Standing on the foundation of the Biblical Psalms, and words of the patriarchs like Job and prophets like Jeremiah, this aspect of Modern Psalmistry addresses the great mystery of the apparent silence and distance of God. This series is an intersection where brutal honesty meets aggressive faith.

With "Heaven to gain and Hell to loose" no wonder the Bible's full of fabulous promises and powerful examples of Omnity’s interaction with mankind, Psalms in the Night are a way of exploring and sharing some of our more problematic yet genuine thoughts and feelings when seeking Him. The road to experiencing God’s presence and power, provision and protection can be bumpy and filled with detours. Even so, it's clear we need to know our Creator and Savior in ever greater ways for our soul’s sake and those of others.

Genuine faith is laying hold of God through the grip of hope. As do other Scriptures, many of the Bible's Psalms demonstrate that honesty regarding our failures and sins, fears and doubts are essential aspects of the process of growing in godliness. As Peter's 2nd Great Confession can attest, even admitting our lack of love for God can be a key ingredient in developing and deepening our relationship with Him.

Hope Does Not Disappoint

The Bible teaches that "hope does not disappoint" and that while "worldly sorrow kills, godly sorry gives life." Mourning, while never pleasant, can be an expression of "godly sorrow."

Scripture places a high value on mourning. Christ Himself predicts that His church shall mourn His absence. In the Beatitudes He teaches it is those who mourn that are comforted. Fresh from His baptism by John in the Jordan and His being led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to fast forty days and be tested by the Devil, Jesus uses His first public sermon to reinforce God's concern for the broken hearted:

"The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written: 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.'” Luke 4:17-19

The debut of Christ's mission to the world was no small event. The text picked by the Spirit through which to introduce Jesus to the world was carefully chosen from tens of thousands of other possibilities. We can be sure that these words from Isaiah truly describe the work and purpose of Christ. A larger excerpt from this passage from Isaiah reads like this:

"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come, and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies. To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory. They will rebuild the ancient ruins, repairing cities destroyed long ago. They will revive them, though they have been deserted for many generations. Foreigners will be your servants. They will feed your flocks and plow your fields and tend your vineyards. You will be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God. You will feed on the treasures of the nations and boast in their riches. Instead of shame and dishonor, you will enjoy a double share of honor. You will possess a double portion of prosperity in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours." Isaiah 63:1-7

James' epistle explains sin can be another reason for mourning. He prescription is as blunt as it is relevant for Christians throughout all ages:

"Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up." James 4:7-10

As a result of the worldly wisdom growing darker and ubiquitous levels of temptation and deception deepening the original sin of entitlement, the love of many has grown cold. Fewer seem interested in casually, much less diligently pursuing God as the New Testament prescribes. This being the case, we do well to consider Jesus warning that "the night comes when no man can work."

It's not only sin but the trials of life that so often seem to separate us from God. David, the Lord's anointed, constantly lamented and prayed against the apparent silence and distance he felt between himself and God:

"To you I call, O LORD my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit. Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place." Psalm 28:1-3

"O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water." Psalm 63:1-3

"Do not cast me away when I am old; do not forsake me when my strength is gone. For my enemies speak against me; those who wait to kill me conspire together. They say, 'God has forsaken him; pursue him and seize him, for no one will rescue him.' Be not far from me, O God; come quickly, O my God, to help me. Psalm 71:9-12

Pouring Out Our Hearts

Even Christ found solace in the Psalms, pouring our His heart through the words of Psalm 22 while offering Himself in inconceivably costly atonement. Rendered here in the The Message version:

“God, God . . . my God! Why did you dump me miles from nowhere? Doubled up with pain, I call to God all the day long. No answer. Nothing. I keep at it all night, tossing and turning. And you! Are you indifferent, above it all, leaning back on the cushions of Israel’s praise? We know you were there for our parents: they cried for your help and you gave it; they trusted and lived a good life. And here I am, a nothing—an earthworm, something to step on, to squash. Everyone pokes fun at me; they make faces at me, they shake their heads: “Let’s see how God handles this one; since God likes him so much, let him help him!” And to think you were midwife at my birth, setting me at my mother’s breasts. When I left the womb you cradled me; since the moment of birth you’ve been my God. Then you moved far away and trouble moved in next door. I need a neighbor. Herds of bulls come at me, the raging bulls stampede, Horns lowered, nostrils flaring, like a herd of buffalo on the move. I’m a bucket kicked over and spilled, every joint in my body has been pulled apart. My heart is a blob of melted wax in my gut. I’m dry as a bone, my tongue black and swollen. They have laid me out for burial in the dirt. Now packs of wild dogs come at me; thugs gang up on me. They pin me down hand and foot, and lock me in a cage—a bag of bones in a cage, stared at by every passerby. They take my wallet and the shirt off my back, and then throw dice for my clothes. You, God—don’t put off my rescue! Hurry and help me! Don’t let them cut my throat; don’t let those mongrels devour me. If you don’t show up soon, I’m done for—gored by the bulls, meat for the lions. Here’s the story I’ll tell my friends when they come to worship, and punctuate it with Hallelujahs: Shout Hallelujah, you God-worshipers; give glory, you sons of Jacob; adore him, you daughters of Israel. He has never let you down, never looked the other way when you were being kicked around. He has never wandered off to do his own thing; he has been right there, listening. Here in this great gathering for worship I have discovered this praise-life. And I’ll do what I promised right here in front of the God-worshipers. Down-and-outers sit at God’s table and eat their fill. Everyone on the hunt for God is here, praising him. “Live it up, from head to toe. Don’t ever quit!” From the four corners of the earth people are coming to their senses, are running back to God. Long-lost families are falling on their faces before him. God has taken charge; from now on he has the last word. All the power-mongers are before him —worshiping! All the poor and powerless, too —worshiping! Along with those who never got it together —worshiping! Our children and their children will get in on this As the word is passed along from parent to child. Babies not yet conceived will hear the good news—that God does what he says.

Precedent And Mandate

Clearly we have a precedent and perhaps even a mandate to wait on and wrestle with God" for ourselves and family, friends and world. In fact there are many Scriptures revealing God is actually looking for just such. Ezekiel chapter 22 is very bold, even more so when read in The Message:

"Your priests violated my law and desecrated my holy things. They can't tell the difference between sacred and secular. They tell people there's no difference between right and wrong. They're contemptuous of my holy Sabbaths, profaning me by trying to pull me down to their level. Your politicians are like wolves prowling and killing and rapaciously taking whatever they want. Your preachers cover up for the politicians by pretending to have received visions and special revelations. They say, "This is what God, the Master, says..." when God hasn't said so much as one word. Extortion is rife, robbery is epidemic, the poor and needy are abused, outsiders are kicked around at will, with no access to justice. I looked for someone to stand up for me against all this, to repair the defenses of the city, to take a stand for me and stand in the gap to protect this land so I wouldn't have to destroy it. I couldn't find anyone. Not one. So I'll empty out my wrath on them, burn them to a crisp with my hot anger, serve them with the consequences of all they've done. Decree of God, the Master." Ezekiel 22:26-31

The above are just a few reason the need to draw near to God by express ourselves deeply and consistently has never been greater. Lester Sumrall once noted, "God doesn't answer prayer. He answers desperate prayer." That sentiment seems to be in keeping with many of the Biblical Psalms which are foundational for these Modern Psalms in the Night...

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