So often in times of trial, the church can become moralistic or pietistic. We try to avoid pain and struggle by jumping to correct doctrine, possibly shortchanging the process of sanctification. How can we have a faith like David the Psalmist, a “man after God’s own heart”?

What is a Psalmic faith? I learned the term from biblical counselor Dr. David Powlison of CCEF, who stated that there is a quality in the Psalms that often does not meet the “godliness” definition in the church proper. A Psalmic faith is a Coram Deo awareness and a godly candor as we confront a fallen world.

So often in times of trial, the church can become moralistic or pietistic. We try to avoid pain and struggle by jumping to correct doctrine, possibly shortchanging the process of sanctification. How can we have a faith like David the Psalmist, a “man after God’s own heart”? Jesus Christ himself in the garden of Gethsemane had perfect faith and foreknowledge, yet He cried out in sorrow to Abba Father. How can we have that manner of intimacy with God? Since we have a high priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses, who has been tempted as we are yet was without sin, we draw near before the throne of grace with confidence, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb. 4:15-16). We reverently (Heb. 5:8) dialogue with Him; we cry out, sometimes with groaning too deep for words (Rom. 8:26); and we listen and find comfort through communing with Him–remembering who He is, what He has done, and the promises yet to be fulfilled–and then we rest in Him. Despite our imperfect faith, it is in returning and rest that we shall find our salvation, and in quietness and trust that we shall find our strength (Isa. 30:15).

I found my Psalmic faith personally challenged last year when my father died suddenly. I was a daddy’s girl. Despite sharing the gospel with him many times, he rejected the claims of Christ. I come from a Japanese-American culture, where stoicism is often valued. Stoicism can be found in Christian culture as well. Paul Miller wrote:

Our inability to lament is primarily due to the influence of the Greek mind on the early church. Greek Stoicism believed that emotions – anything that interrupted the goal of a calm and balanced life—were bad. The passionate person was the immature person.

A lament grieves that the world is unbalanced. It grieves at the gap between reality and God’s promise. It believes in a God who is there, who can act in time and space. It doesn’t drift into cynicism or unbelief, but engages God passionately with what’s wrong.[1]

Initially, I held on tightly to God and preached His truths to myself. I engaged with the truths of the Godhead three-in-one, the miracle of my own salvation, the Giver of the gift of my precious earthly father, God’s promises kept and promises yet to be fulfilled, God’s mercy, sovereignty, faithfulness and lovingkindness, and our sanctification through trials. I read through numerous resources on grief, and could tell others about the biblical truths I was learning through the loss of my father. I think I put pressure on myself to be spiritually “strong” because, as a biblical counselor, I firmly believe in the ministry of the Word and the sufficiency of Scripture.

Read More