From Pouting to Praise

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?How long will you hide your face from me?How long must I take counsel in my souland have sorrow in my heart all the day?How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

But I have trusted in your steadfast love;my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord,because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Psalm 13:1-6

At some time in your Christian journey you may ask God this question, “How long”? It is a question posed by someone who has prayed and asked God to help him or her understand why his or her prayers aren’t being answered. It is a plea for God to deliver them, to give them what they want, essentially what you’re doing equates to nothing short of pouting. It is what children do when they don’t get their way and it is what immature Christians do when they don’t have the basic understanding that God does not exist to give us what we want. Our Christian walk is about doing God’s will.David asked God the question “How long” when he faced difficulty, causing him to feel forgotten, possibly depressed and saddened by the thought that God had not heard him. He wasn’t getting the relief or answers to his prayers as quickly as he wanted. But somehow, in his prayer, David remembered that God was trustworthy which caused him to go from pouting to praising.God’s word clearly states that He will never leave nor forsake us (Hebrews 12:5b) yet it is in our aggravation of not getting immediate resolution that we pout and become irritable.The next time it appears that God isn’t hearing you, pray anyway and trust in His infallible (unfailing) word. Sing His praises for He truly is good to us!