Be Still And Know

Psalm 88.1-3 NLT 'O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out to you by day. I come to you at night. Now hear my prayer; listen to my cry. For my life is full of troubles, and death draws near.' This is possibly the saddest of all the psalms. The psalmist cried out to God in a state of total despair. Many of the psalms are referred to as psalms of lament but this one goes even further and is full of absolute desperation. It is painful to read the psalm because it is so bleak, but I am so glad that it is part of the Bible. It reminds us that God is there for us, whatever the circumstances. His love reaches out to us even in the darkest of places. It reminds me of Psalm 139 where the psalmist declared that it is impossible to escape from God’s Spirit. “I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there.” (Psalm 139.7-8) We are all different and it may be that you have never been through such desperate times and never will. But from time to time