Questions, Complaints, and Commitment

Day three hundred fifty-four

This morning I prayed for ways that I can keep Christ in Christmas.  I asked the Lord to bless me with the opportunities to be an example to those around me, to be of service to those in need, and to let the Spirit guide me.  I know He will do His part, I just need to make sure that I do mine!

Psalm 10
This psalm contains brutal honesty and an earnest call for God to bring His justice on the wicked. No punches are pulled here.  The psalmist is honest and has no qualms with questioning God.  He also has no patience for powerful people who persecuted the poor. 

This psalm gives us a three-step process for dealing with our own questions and problems. When life throws you for a loop…declare your questions (v 1), describe your complaint (vv 2-11), and deepen your commitment to God (vv 12-18).

Declare Your Questions
Verse 1 begins rather abruptly: “Why, standest thou afar off, O Lord? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?” In other words, God, you may be powerful and you may be personal, but why can’t I sense your presence right now? This is hard because sometimes this is exactly the way we feel.  Where are you God?!

When tragedy, misery, or oppression leaves you teetering, it’s not unspiritual to declare your questions to God. He’s big enough to handle your cries. Some people have been rocked by some pretty tough stuff!

Some people think that Christians shouldn’t question God, so they keep their concerns bottled up. For me, it’s much better to ask God where He’s been than it is to wear a fake smile and act like everything’s going well when I know it isn’t. God wants to hear from us in the good times and the bad.  We have permission to be honest.

As Christians, we have an avenue for unloading the burdens of our hearts. We don’t have to dump on friends and family because we can go directly to God with our questions. If you’re wondering what’s happening or why things are unfolding the way they are, ask God about it. He can take it!

The word question has as its root the word “quest.” If you’re on a quest to understand, if you’re serious about seeking answers, then you shouldn’t hesitate to declare your doubts. If you don’t ask, you might miss out on some surprising answers and ultimately cheat yourself out of some growth that God wants to accomplish in your life.  It's okay to share your questions with God!

Describe Your Complaint
After we declare our questions to God, the next step is to describe our complaint.  When you’re talking to God, don’t worry about repeating what you’ve already said. Spell it out. Describe your concerns in detail.  After the psalmist declares his questions, he lists the problems he sees. He describes those who take advantage of others in some pretty strong terms as he rattles off  their sins:

They are arrogant (2), they hunt down the weak (2), they’re controlled by their own evil desires (3), they bless the greedy (3), they revile the Lord (3), they have no room for God in their life (4), they lead prosperous lives (5), they snub the laws of God (5), they think things will always go their way (6), they curse and lie (7), they ambush the innocent (8), they look for more victims (9), they crush the helpless (10), and they think God does not see what they’re doing (11).

It is hard to watch people act like that and wonder why God would let them get away with it. When we are seeking understanding on tough topics we have to ask God and describe our concerns. What is it exactly that’s bothering us? What makes us mad? Tell God about it. Write it down. Get it out. Put it into a prayer.


Deepen Your Commitment to God
Can you see the progression of faith that takes place in this psalm? The hurting follower begins with two bold “why” questions and then spells out his complaints in specific detail. When we come to verse 12, we see that, as a result of being honest with God, his commitment to the Lord now goes to the next level. We can learn from this same process.

 When you have questions and complaints, express them and then turn to the Lord. In this psalm the writer boldly asks the Lord to intervene: "Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up thine hand: forget not the humble" (v 12).  He does this because he realizes that God is not distant and He’s not hiding. He’s a personal God, who knows our trouble and sees our tears. The phrase “requite it with thy hand” refers to God’s personal involvement and capacity to judge people according to what they have done.

Then, the psalmist focuses on God’s power in verse 16: “The Lord is King for ever and ever.” When we are burdened by our “why” questions and swimming in a sea of concerns, we need to come back to God’s perspective.

Because of His personality and His power, verses 17-18 tell us that God not only sees, He also acts:  "Lord, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear:  To judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that the man of the earth may no more oppress."

The word, “hear” means to give “diligent attention” to someone. God is listening, eagerly anticipating what we are going to say. The word “desire” can also refer to our longings. God understands our deep desires and the agonizing aches of our hearts.  We have to trust Him to take the action that is right and will fulfill His plan.

Wow!  I really loved studying this Psalm. This became very personal for me.  Over the years,  I have often found myself filled with questions and unsure where to go with them.  And I have occassionally stepped into the complaining phase, but often felt a little guilty for doing it.  The funny thing is that when I look back on those times I have found that my relationship with God did strengthen after I let Him know how I was feeling.  There is something healing about being completely honest with God in those questioning moments.  I truly think that He would rather hear my questions and complaints than to let me stew on them and build a barrier between us.  I don't know why I ever doubted His desire to hear my honest questions and complaints.  In my ignorance I'm sure I missed out on some amazing moments to increase my commitment to Him.  I won't let it happen again!