And Even If He Does Not

The other morning as I continued in my quest to make the Psalms a mainstay of my reading diet I came across 2 phrases in chapter 9 that resonated in my little brain:

"The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you." (v9-10)

and

"...he does not ignore the cry of the afflicted." (v12b)

I stopped and asked this question: "So what does it mean, God, if I feel that my cry is ignored?" and further added this statement, "I feel forsaken." A few years ago I never would have typed those sentences for public viewing nor would I have admitted them to God himself. What's different? Well, I still felt and thought them, God knew it, so why not be honest and ask the tough questions? He can take it!

I sat for a few minutes, quieted my heart and mind with only a silent pleading asked God to please show me something....anything.

I don't know that I had a big revelation but in my heart I heard "EVEN IF HE DOES NOT..." and at once I thought of a very familiar story about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, the 3 friends of Daniel in the book of Daniel. I immediately flipped over several pages and read it again. Just before they were thrown into the fiery furnace they told Nebuchadnezzar, "the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O King. But EVEN IF HE DOES NOT, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of god you have set up." (Daniel 3:17-18 emphasis mine)

These 3 guys were amazing. They knew God could rescue them physically but more than that, they knew that even if he didn't rescue them physically, they would be rescued spiritually and while their time on earth came to an end, they would be ushered into His presence. Either way, as they saw it, they win. They would not feel forsaken if it didn't turn out in physical deliverance.

Many of us probably know how this turned out for them....not only did Jesus himself show up and walk around the fire with them (that's my belief on who that 4th guy was), when King N called to them, out they walked and "the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them." (3:27) I smile at that last phrase and what I perceive as a sense of humor from God, almost as if it say "I'll go one better, they won't even smell!" Okay, totally my interjection there but it's just like God to go that extra mile.

I don't know that I can unequivocally state my arrival at the sentence "even if He does not". But it was a big ah-ha for me that morning. EVEN IF HE DOES NOT...I will....what? Feel ignored? Feel forsaken? What right do I have to say to God, if you don't do this, it means (fill in the blank)? None. No right at all. I don't get to decide that if God doesn't act like I want him to then He is unfaithful or has forsaken me or ignored me.

Yes, I have to work through those feelings and I truly believe God understands that. I'm not the first in the history of this world to do so and I won't be the last. God help me if I come up with anything less than...AND EVEN IF HE DOES NOT I WILL HOLD FIRM AND FOLLOW.