While we live in a generation where many people view ‘religion’ as a private and personal experience that bears little relevance to the real world, the Psalmist saw his connection with God as a vital, passionate, life-enriching connection, that he needed more than the air he breathed or the water his thirst longed for. It is my pastoral mission to help those whose hearts are inclined toward God to join with the Psalmist and to pant after a deeper communion with God.
Benaiah was having a bad day. After all, it’s bad enough just being outside when it’s really cold and snowing and you’re not dressed appropriately. That’s not fun. But that wasn’t all he faced. Not only was it snowing, Benaiah was in a deep pit. I’m not an authority on being thrown down a pit by my enemies, but I can only imagine being in a deep pit, possibly for days, is not fun, but being in a deep pit on a snowy day ill-dressed is really not fun. But that wasn’t all Benaiah faced. He was stuck outside on a snowy day, down a deep pit, and sharing it with a man-eating lion! I’m no authority on being outside in the snow down a deep pit with a ferocious lion, but I’m guessing that it’s really really not fun! If things had ever looked dark for Benaiah, I think it was this day! But Benaiah discovered what I have also found: that when things look dark they never stay that way.
Chances are, you will meet a difficult person. You will have no trouble identifying them. They can be charming and nice, but then snap. When they snap, they lash out – and they hurt. These moments reveal just how underlyingly angry they are. But these moments also reveal just how hurt they are. Anger is always a symptom of hurt. And sometimes this hurt can hurt so bad that it numbs (or seeks to be numbed by) its host.
The Psalmist once cried out to God for wings so that he could fly away from all his troubles. How many of us have joined the Psalmist in his prayer and added, “And me too Lord!” Yet God didn’t answer his prayer and never answers this for us either. As Francis Thompson found, running away from your problems only unleashes certain hounds who inevitably set off in pursuit and track us down. Wherever a person goes, they are often surprised to find their troubles have gone ahead of them. I think God didn’t give us wings for a reason.