How much better would our balance in life be if we knew—and acted on the knowledge—that we can cry out to Yahweh from the deepest depths of our hearts?
I’ll start by saying this is no perfect habit of mine. I’m very liable to rant to people before I vent to God. Yet so often it’s Him I need to take my grievances to, like the psalmists. It can just be so difficult to rant to a God who may not answer right away, when human attention, commiseration, and comfort often comes at the snap of our fingers.
Yet, cry out to Yahweh we should. When we gain a heavenly perspective—the one that places Him in the appropriate position as provider and protector, among other things—there is so much more to be gained from going to Him than anyone or anything else. No, we may not get the instant gratification we seek, but we’re likely to find a far more permanent and holy solution.
I get it, though. The honest, heartfelt questions raised in places like Psalm 44 can be tough to read, never mind to speak for ourselves. What begins as a psalm exhorting God’s might and deliverance of Israel seems to devolve into accusations of Yahweh rejecting and downtreading His warriors, leaving them slaughtered by their enemies like sheep. There are times we can feel this way, too, when confronted with the evils of life. You know the kind. Suffering and uncertainty, pain and sorrow. Things we all run up against. Affliction that feels biased, unfair, unwarranted and even unendurable—as if God Himself were afflicting us. Sometimes we feel this distance or like we’re at odds with God because of our own choices, which cause us to step outside the shield of His mighty hand; sometimes it’s the circumstances themselves that bring that feeling of being adrift, so it seems like we’re far from Him even though He’s near.
Whatever the case, we may all experience this feeling at one time or another. And this is a time not just to seek wise counsel from friends, family, and spiritual brothers and sisters, but also to muster the courage to cry out to God Himself. I remember doing this so many times when my anxiety and depression were at their peak. When I felt like there was a literal barrier separating me from my Creator, and I was alone on one side being absolutely pummeled by spiritual attacks and my own brain and body failing me…I’d just cry out. I would rant, I’d rave, I’d demand to know where God was and why He wouldn’t just snap His fingers and fix me.
As difficult as it was to hear myself voice those painful questions, it was often through the outpouring of rage, angst, and fear that I found calm in the eye of the storm enough to hear God’s voice. To find His leading and make my way back to the shelter of His wings. And this is something I encourage us all to do. We are not going to be zapped by a holy stroke of lightning when we raise a cry from our afflicted souls; in relationship with God through Jesus Christ, we are beckoned to bring heartfelt supplications, prayers, and, yes, the broken keening of our battered souls before Him.
There is far more truth and healing to be found in the answers we find when we seek Him wholeheartedly than when we go to other people. If we cry out to Him in affliction and ask Him to raise our souls from the dust and our bodies from the earth, we often find He was so much nearer than we ever knew.
If you’re in that afflicted place, cry out to God. Bare your heart before Him. You may be surprised just how much it helps lift the weight—and how much more clearly you can see His loving presence on the other side.
