Psalm 44 -- Any Way To Talk To God?

The sons of Korah wrote this psalm when they couldn't understand why Israel had lost a war.  I understand their questions, but I almost cringed at how they asked God questions.

They first acknowledged that God alone was the source of their strength, that He had acted on Israel's behalf in the past, and that they trusted Him to do so again.  "You were with [our ancestors] because You loved them."

They praised God even when they were defeated, saying, "We will praise God every day; we will praise Your name forever."

And after the praise comes the questions....

"But You have rejected us and shamed us ... You made us a joke to our neighbors ... But You crushed us ... and You covered us with deep darkness."

They don't attribute their defeat to any possibility of unpreparedness for battle or wrong strategies.  In fact, they had examined their lives and found no conscious sin that would have caused defeat:  "All these things have happened to us, but we have not forgotten You or failed to keep our agreement with You.  Our hearts haven't turned away from You, and we haven't stopped following You ... If we had forgotten our God or lifted our hands in prayer to foreign gods, God would have known, because He knows what is in our hearts..."

This gives them the boldness to ask, I guess:  "Wake up, Lord!  Why are You sleeping?  Get up!  Don't reject us forever.  Why do You hide from us? .... Get up and help us.  Because of Your love, save us."

And because of His love, He did answer that last plea, and sent His Son.

Father, I know You don't abandon me.  You do take me through trials to build my faith, but You don't give me more than You have grown me to handle.  Keep watching closely, Father. 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford