Difficult to Praise?

Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept

as we thought of Jerusalem.

We put away our harps

hanging them on the branches of poplar trees

For our captors demanded a song from us.

Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn:

"Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!"

But how can we sing the songs of the Lord

while in a pagan land?

(Psalm 137:1-4)

Sometimes when we are in the midst of a storm in life, our difficult circumstances can overshadow the love of God and we can even find ourselves questioning everything we believe in. Right smack dab in the middle of my own difficult circumstances, brought on by my own sinful choices, I was there - questioning God and whether or not he really cared for me. I was held captive and in bondage to the strongholds that Satan had told me after I had sinned, and I was ashamed of my decisions that lead up to that very same sin. I had been decieved. I desperately wanted things to go back to the way they were before I found myself off the path of life, that God had set me on and on the path of destruction that was stealing the very life from me. I felt like I was in a pagan land. I had turned my back on God and on the things I knew were good and right. I had rebelled against my loving Father. Thinking about how things once were caused me to shed many tears as I wished I could turn back the hands of time and not make the same mistakes again, but that was impossible. What was done could not be erased. It happened. What I didn't realize at the time was that God was going to use my mistakes for his glory. The things that I went through would not be wasted. He turned my focus back to him and as I struggled through confession and repentance, God was there. He never left me. His love exuded from those around me as I told my bitter story of rebellion. God turned my tears of sorrow and regret into tears of joy! As I continued to walk through the valley, it was so much easier to praise God and to be thankful for the things that he had undeservidly blessed me with along the way, because I knew he was with me. Much like the Israelites were in captivity, I was in captivity to my sinful choices and their consequences. Pleading for forgiveness and repenting removed the veil that had been preventing me from seeing God's love for me. He had always loved me, regardless of my choices. He never stops loving me, even if I fail to do what is right. He is always faithful, always loving, always true no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in. Praise God in all things. Rejoice in all things. When the road gets rough, remember that God is with you, he loves you greatly and will never let you go.