Day 8 | Troi Buchanan

This week in our Psalm readings, I want to work backwards.Psalm 17

6 I am crying aloud to You, O True God, for I long to know Your answer. Hear me, O God. Hear my plea. Hear my prayer for help.

In Psalm 17, we find David feeling abandoned by God. Pleading that God would just show up.Psalm17

1 Listen, O Eternal One, to my cry for justice. These words of mine are true—turn Your ear toward me. 2 Announce that I am free of all the charges against me—only You can see into my heart to know that to be true. Treat me with fairness; look at me with justice. 3 You have searched me—my heart and soul—awakened me from dreaming and tested me. You’ve found nothing against me. I have resolved not to sin in what I say. 4 The path violent men have followed, I will not travel. Violence is not my way.Your ways and Your voice now guide my journey. 5 I will press on—moving steadfastly forward along Your path. I will not look back. I will not stumble.

David starts to list all that he’s done to prove himself worthy in the eyes of God. We’ve all been there; we’ve all experienced this moment. “God what have I done to deserve this distance?”Here’s the thing…it’s relatable, but it’s also terrible theology. God is always with us, within us, around us, and nothing we do or do not do can change that. David knows that, but in this moment all David feels is emptiness, darkness, and distance. It’s in this moment that I think David should reflect on his own words.Psalm 16

5 You, Eternal One, are my sustenance and my life-giving cup. In that cup, You hold my future and my eternal riches. 6 My home is surrounded in beauty; You have gifted me with abundance and a rich legacy. 7 I will bless the Eternal, whose wise teaching orchestrates my days and centers my mind at night. 8 You are ever present with me; at all times You go before me. I will not live in fear or abandon my calling because You stand at my right hand. 9 This is a good life—my heart is glad, my soul is full of joy, and my body is at rest. Who could want for more?

So much to say and so little word count left. Here’s just one thought; Do we ever stop and take the time to revel in all that God IS IN in our life? And I don’t just mean the big things (the jobs, the relationships, the ministries), but the little things. The breathe we get to breathe. The taste of good food. The beautiful sun and sky. The hug of a loved one. Even the smile we give each other when we pass by on the street. All of us, no matter what hardship we’re going through, get to experience these things.

5 You, Eternal One, are my sustenance and my life-giving cup. In that cup, You hold my future and my eternal riches.

We spend so much time looking for *the moment*, *the experience*, or *the sign* that we miss God in the minute. God is our sustenance and we get to partake in God every single day. Maybe…just maybe…when we’re going through the seasons where God isn’t present, it’s not that God isn’t there, it’s that we’re looking in the wrong places. Maybe in those seasons what we need isn’t a huge revelation, or an intense feeling, but we just need to see God in the cashier at Bold Bean, or in a good movie, or in a Kendrick Lamar album.

10 You will not abandon me to experience death and the grave or leave me to rot alone. 11 Instead, You direct me on the path that leads to a beautiful life. As I walk with You, the pleasures are never-ending, and I know true joy and contentment.

God is always with you.You are never alone.