Often, I find myself thinking about Asaph’s words in Psalm 77. He was at a place in his life when he was despondent. Consider his declarations: He cried out / was in distress / his soul refused to be comforted / he groaned / his spirit grew faint / he could not rest / he was too troubled to speak / he wondered if God had forgotten him and Israel.
Then, he discovered a solution. He meditated on the Lord’s mighty works in the past. In other words, if he could not find God in the present, he would look to the past. And what he remembered about God and his faithfulness was greatly encouraging to him. He realized that the God who had been faithful to him and to Israel, in the past, would continue to be faithful even if, in the moment, it seemed otherwise.
God is our refuge and our strength,
our ever present aid,
and, therefore, though the earth gives way,
we will not be afraid;
though hills amidst the sea be cast,
'though foaming waters roar,
yea, though the mighty billows shake
the mountains on the shore. –Psalm 46, The Scottish Psalter