WISDOM FROM THE PSALMS FOR 4/17/13

Psalm 13:1

How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?

There is no worse feeling than feeling a distance from God. When we cry out in prayer, we need to feel His presence with us. When that feeling is absent, hopelessness and despair set in. We need to know, however, that the Lord has not really gone far from us, but we have pushed Him from ourselves. The Lord is always as close as a prayer, and we need but open our hearts to Him, and His presence will be felt once again. The Lord never hides His face from us, though often He will wait; stepping back like the loving Father that He is, to see whether or not we can struggle through a problem on our own. God wants to see us grow, and He often has to let us struggle a bit in order to allow that growth to occur. Even in those times of trial, however, the Lord is never far away, and He will not allow us to be tried beyond our endurance.

Prayer: Help me to know that You are with me i n every situation at every moment of the day. I need Your comforting presence in my life, O Lord. Without it, I cannot go on. Amen.