The faithfulness of God to the saints needs to be a guide for our lives as we wait on God in our suffering and through our trials. Yes, sometimes the saints received deliverance and victory. Yet many times they also died in faith, not receiving such earthly deliverance, but most certainly (with the anchor of hope) they received the salvation of their souls (see Heb. 10–11).
We know about storms in Florida. Our family home sat in the path of the eye of Hurricane Charlie almost twenty years ago. When the roof peeled off from part of the house, we were left with damage that took many months (and some tens of thousands of dollars) to repair. Most of our home required new walls, ceilings, and floors (and an entirely new kitchen that we affectionately call “Charlie’s Kitchen”). It was a long journey back to normal.
In 2023, Hurricane Idalia whipped through Florida, coming ashore in the Big Bend region. Many of the small towns there were devastated.
Such storms remind me of Mark Heard’s song “Eye of the Storm” (1983), wherein he sings of the safety that God’s people enjoy even in the midst of storms. In God’s providence, Heard weathered his own storm, suffering a heart attack at forty years old and then dying six weeks later from cardiac arrest.
We don’t need to be reminded that we live in a fallen and broken world. Our lives too often are filled with tragedy, injustice, heart-rending unmet expectations, and dashed hopes. Storms of the soul don’t come with damaging wind, but it certainly can seem as though our souls are tearing apart from forces rising against us. People and powers in authority over us too often lie and pervert justice; vocational callings can seem to dry up and disappear; family struggles destroy relationships and create seemingly unbridgeable chasms. Cancer, loss, life-altering disabilities—the list goes on and on. And as we wait for deliverance, we cry out, “How long, O Lord?”
Jerry Bridges (perhaps most well known for his book The Pursuit of Holiness) knew these things too. I was blessed to work closely with Jerry at Ligonier Ministries (in 1989), writing a study guide for Dr. Sproul’s lecture series The Providence of God. Jerry had recently lost his wife, who suffered from and died as a result of a brain tumor. Through the darkness of this journey, he wrote Trusting God Even When Life Hurts, one of the best books on God’s sovereignty, suffering, and waiting. He told me privately that when his dear wife finally passed into glory, he needed to go back and read his book again. He needed to be reminded again of the goodness and trustworthiness of God.
Another account is Joni Eareckson Tada’s book A Place of Healing. She speaks from experience with great candor and grace after more than fifty years as a quadriplegic, waiting on God’s deliverance.
The psalmists knew these things (and it is interesting how, despite all the massive changes from the ancient world to our day, the human condition and suffering remain timeless). Three times across Psalms 42–43, the psalmists admit that their souls are downcast. The metaphors are rich and varied. The psalmists speak of being parched and desperate (42:1–3); they are being swept away by waves (42:7); they feel forgotten and wounded (42:7, 9).
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