Pastor Rick Warren concludes Chapter 12 (“When God Seems Distant”) of The Purpose Driven Life by discussing 4 ways we can stay connected with God during a “crisis without communication”, keeping our eyes on Jesus even when they’re filled with tears (author’s words are in bold type):
1. Tell God exactly how you feel. Pour out your heart to God, unloading all emotions that you’re feeling. God can handle it. Pastor Warren goes so far as to note that admitting your hopelessness to God can be a statement of faith. As David stated in Psalm 116:10- “I believed; therefore I said,’I am greatly afflicted.’ ” David’s frankness reveals that he believed in God, that God would listen to his prayer, and that God would let him express his emotions and still love him.
2. Focus on who God is- his unchanging nature. God’s character remains unchanged despite our changing circumstances. Though God may be silent in our adversity, we need to find reasons to praise Him. As V. Raymond Edman famously stated: “Never doubt in the dark what God told you in the light.”
3. Trust God to keep his promises. During desert, transitional times we must patiently rely on God’s promises, not our emotions. God’s character doesn’t change even if our circumstances do.
4. Remember what God has already done for you. Even if Jesus never did anything else for us for the rest of our lives, He deserves our continual praise because He died for us on the Cross!
Reminder: Holy Week Short Meditation, “Worthy is the Lamb”, will post tomorrow.
