The good news of Christ
Psalm 44
In spite of what befalls us,
We don’t forget the Lord,
We’re true to him who calls us,
Not false to his covenant word.
Our hearts have kept the faith,
Our feet strayed not from the path,
Though tossed on the sea as froth,
Though we have felt his wrath.
Rouse yourself from sleep,
O Lord, we sink in the dust;
Raise us up from the deep,
In you, our King, we trust.
Lord, hear our inner groans,
our unseen suffering, silent
affliction, swallowed pain.
We see your cross of blood,
betrayal, dark and craven,
in agony, utterly alone.
We speak to One who knows
the depth of anguish, finding
in Him our meaning of peace.
With pangs of hunger do beggars ask why,
Or do the sufferers look to the sky?
One man seeks to learn from pain,
Another sees no obvious gain.
The body over time decays,
The aging mind has tricks it plays.
O God, where does existence lead?
And what is man’s most basic need?
Do not our hearts yearn most for you?
Where will we go when life is through?
Lord, still our hearts and wake our minds
To truth in Christ which in freedom binds.
His faithful answers satisfy,
To questions his silence the best reply.
Relieve the pain, O Lord, of those who suffer. We know you are willing to save and willing to help your creatures. We confess we do not know how you do that for best effect. But if pain must still be a part of life, a part of the body’s affliction, the mind’s questionings, the heart’s hurtings, make them serve still a good purpose in our walk with you. Continue reading “For those in pain”