Praying through the seasons of life Looking at the Psalms together Psalms of satisfaction Psalms of disorientation and lament Psalms of new life Psalms of thanksgiving

The psalms bring expression to the seasons of life. Not just different ages but times of deep spiritual change & renewal.

Hit one of these hard enough and the lights go out!

What does it mean for Jesus to bring hope to those ‘walking in darkness’ today? Psalm 13

1 How long, L ORD ? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? 3 Look on me and answer, L ORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, 4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 5 But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. 6 I will sing the L ORD ’s praise, for he has been good to me.

The Psalmist longs for God to bring light to my eyes. v3

Foundational truth: Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8 But what do we do with disappointment, grief, suffering? Or when God seems absent? Defiant faith is good. But it needs to be rooted in the good news of Jesus.

The language of the psalms allows us to take off our masks. We question God… How long? Four times the psalmist asks! The context: Upwards to God v1 Inwards to ourselves v2 Outwards to others v2

Hope for those who feel disconnected v1 Those who feel forgotten by God. Those who are not sure of the way ahead. Those who have lost connection with life’s purpose and direction. Jesus reconnects us. “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Hope for those with troubled hearts v2 wrestle with my thoughts Troubled hearts come from: Creeping self-obsession From unconfessed sin… (1 John 1:9) From fear… (John 14:1) When we’re at the place of ‘How long Lord?’ we need to fix our eyes on Jesus Heb 12:2

v2 sorrow in my heart That empty space in our hearts… It may come from bereavement; divorce; unemployment; children growing and leaving home; failing health or faith… Our solution: to allow God’s unfailing love to come and fill that space. v5 Hope for those coping with loss

Hope for those overcome with defeat and despair My enemy triumphs over me v2 Sadness can be anything from being a bit down to clinical depression. There are times when we feel totally isolated. We remember our history with God. For he has been good to me. v6

Our hearts look for God in the darkness. We need the light otherwise there is spiritual death…. Something does change for the psalmist. But where?

The psalmist engages God face to face…v1; v3 There’s a spiritual transaction. Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:8 Assurance of being heard. God’s promise throughout the Bible: Fear not…

The Storm of 1987

On 15 October 1987 a great storm hit the UK and felled around 15 million trees. It lifted this tree’s root plate right up, then resettled it back down. But, unusually, this didn’t kill the tree. Before the storm the tree had shown signs of stress, its roots having become compacted by people sheltering under it for years. Afterwards it had a new lease of life - its roots had been decompacted and had more space, air and water to help it grow. Seeing this, Kew’s staff quickly developed decompaction methods for use on other trees. Turners Oak: Kew Gardens

The move to new life. This comes when we thought all was lost. We escape the pit of chaos just when we thought we wouldn’t make it. We credit it to God because it’s inexplicable to us.

I will sing the Lord’s praise for he has been good to me. Psalm 13:6

Praying through the seasons of life Looking at the Psalms together Psalms of satisfaction Psalms of disorientation and lament Psalms of new life Psalms of thanksgiving