When You Are Soul-Sick for God

Have you ever been spiritually dry?  Have you gone throw periods when you’ve lost your enthusiasm for God, felt detached or emotionally distant from Him?  If you’ve ever experienced something like that, or you are experiencing a season of spiritual dryness right now, and you’re wondering if you can ever get back on track with God –  then what you may be going through is what the old mystics of the faith accurately labeled, “the dark night of the soul.”

Another way of putting it, is that you’re soul-sick for God. You want to be excited about your faith; you want to be full of praise and joy; you know God loves you and you love Him, but it just seems like something’s off.  You’d like to change how you feel, you’d like to get back on track with God, enjoy your relationship with God, but you don’t know what to do or how to go about it…  And if you’ve ever been there, or if you’re there right now, what you need to know is that you’re not alone in your soul sickness.  You’re not alone in this spiritual wilderness you find yourself in…for just about anyone who’s ever walked with God has experienced this dark night of the soul.

And one of those who experienced this dark night of the soul, but battled his way out of it is the author of our Psalm this morning. His battle is recorded for us in Psalm 42, where we’re going to dig into the dark night of his soul, discover how he got there and what he did to help himself get back on track with God.  So, if you want to know how fight through your soul sickness and get back on track with God, let me encourage you to open your Bible to Psalm 42 where we’re going to begin by looking at…

The Condition of Soul Sickness: As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?  Psalm 42:1-2

This is a pretty famous picture of a soul thirsting for God.  We all know what it’s like to thirst; what’s it’s like to be physically parched; especially, if you’ve been out in the extreme heat we’ve been having. Thirst flows from a void within us.  Thirst is our body’s way telling us we are dehydrated – that our tongues are parched, our bodies need water.  So, this metaphor helps us get a feel for the condition of a soul that’s desperate for God. It’s a picture of soul that’s running on empty, that’s parched, that is thirsting for God: “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so my soul pants for you.”

But that’s not the only picture the psalmist gives us of his soul sickness.  He gives us another picture in verse 5, where he asks two questions, Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me?  These questions show us the extent of his soul sickness.  First, the word “downcast” means depressed, bent low or in despair.   In other words, you can become so distant from God, that you can actually experience spiritual depression.  The second term here is, “disturbed.” This is the condition of the soul in turmoil. This is when your soul is being dominated by a sense of disquiet or anxiety.  In other words, when your soul is disturbed, there’s no rest, no peace, and no sense of God’s presence. This is the dark night of the soul.

How did the psalmist come to this place where his soul was dry, where he was spiritually depressed and full of anxiety?  After all, the man who is writing this psalm is a Son of Korah; a Levitical priest who help lead God’s people in worship. Here’s a guy whose very occupation was to help people encounter God in Temple Worship. What happened to cause so much turmoil and spiritual unrest in his soul? What caused him to become so thirsty for God?  Well, that’s what we’re going to see next:

The Causes of Soul Sickness 

• Isolation from worship Jerusalem.  He’s far from the Temple.  He wants to come and worship with God’s people and see His God, but he can’t. Something is preventing him from being there.  We’re not told what that is.   But what we hear in his question is that his distance from Temple worship has increased his distance from God.

Now, this doesn’t mean he can’t worship God where he finds himself.  But what it does tells us is that there is something to it when we come together to worship God. What it tells us that there’s an encounter with God we can’t experience when we’re alone. For example, Psalm 22 tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people.

Ephesians 2 tells us that whenever we’re together, God’s Spirit dwells in our midst. It’s no wonder the evil one works so hard to keep God’s people from worshiping together.  For if he can isolate you from worship with God’s people, he can distance you from God.  Maybe, you’ve never realized this before. Isolation from worship and separation from God’s people can contribute to seasons of spiritual dryness and spiritual depression.  Which is why one of the best things you can ever do when you’re feeling spiritually low is to come to worship God. Isolation from God’s people is not good for your soul.  It’s one of the causes of spiritual depression.  Here’s another one:

• Opposition from unbelievers: In verse 3, the psalmist writes: My tears have tears have been my food day and night while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”  In other words, in this distant land he’s surrounded by unbelievers who are taunting him with the question, “Where is your God?”

Now, this taunt did not mean that God did not exist, but it implied that somehow God had abandoned him. It’s as though they were asking, “Where is your God now?  Why isn’t He doing something to help you?  The implication was that God didn’t really care about him.  The implication was that having a faith in God was irrelevant if He couldn’t do anything to help him. And when unbelievers constantly question God’s goodness or relevancy, they not only can raise doubts in you, but can get you to question God’s goodness yourself – and this too can lead to spiritual depression.  So, opposition from unbelievers is another cause of soul sickness.  Here’s another:

• Memories of better days These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. Psalm 42:4

Remember, this psalmist was a worship leader.  Here he is remembering the good times of worshiping with God’s people.  I liken this to remembering your mountain top experiences with God.  You know, those times where you were literally blown away by the richness of God’s presence or the power of His working in your midst. This reminds me of when I went to Men’s Camp for the first time as a new believer.  I’d only known Jesus for eight months,  and that night I went to worship with 2000 men.  Hearing the voices of 2000 men singing “How Great Thou Art” with total abandon did something to me. I got so choked up, I couldn’t sing.  Then there was my first year at Western Baptist College.  Every time we started singing in our chapel services, the air would be so thick with the presence of the Holy Spirit that I never wanted to leave.

Well, if you’ve ever encountered God in worship like that, and now you’re alone and your soul is parched for God’s presence – well, knowing what you’re missing can make you spiritually sad and even miserable.  Memories of better days.  Or this one:

• Overwhelming trials  Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. Psalm 42:7  “Waves and breakers have swept over me” is a pretty clear metaphor for the trials of life that can overwhelm us and disturb our souls.  Trials can devastate us, make us worry, fret, lose perspective, get lost in grief, and make us question whether God is really good.

Unfortunately, I’ve gotten a bit familiar with this one of late with the loss of my mother, and my daughter’s miscarriage.  Seeing my daughter struggle with her health and with her grief is unsettling.  I understand the “disquiet,” “the turmoil” of waves and breakers sweeping over me.  You’ve really got to regain your footing with God when trials overwhelm, because like waves, they can sweep you off your feet.  They can steal your peace or wash away your joy, if you let them.  So, overwhelming trials are definitely a cause of soul sickness.  They can make you spiritually ill or miserable within.

• Perceived Failure of God to Act I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” Psalm 42:9

Have you ever felt like God’s forgotten you?  You’ve asked Him to help you; you’ve asked Him to heal a loved one, and you even know Jesus’ promise from Matthew 7 that says: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Matthew 7:7-8  But it seems like God isn’t hearing you, that God’s ignoring your prayers, or He’s simply forgotten you.

This is one of the more difficult struggles we face.  Sometimes we pray, we pray persistently, but nothing happens.  And we’re left wondering if God has forgotten us, or if He really cares.  Obviously, this is what the psalmist was experiencing.  He was still mourning, still thirsting, still wondering if God was going to help him or deliver him.  He was overwhelmed by his trials, still fending off his enemies, still longing for God and for home.  Nothing was happening.  Sometimes we have times like that. We feel like we’re lost in a spiritual wilderness because nothing is happening. And when nothing happens it can be discouraging, even depressing.  So, we become soul sick and begin to believe that God has forgotten us…

Now, when we put all these causes of soul sickness together, it’s easy to see why the psalmist was struggling.  It’s easy to see why he’d feel downcast, why he was longing for God’s presence, and why he’d think that God had forgotten him.  But the good news, is that the psalmist doesn’t give.  He doesn’t throw in the towel.  Rather, he begins to fight.  And in so doing, he now reveals what we can do when our soul is sick and we’re longing for God.  Here now he reveals…

The Cure for Soul Sickness The first thing you can do when you’re experiencing soul sickness is this:

• Remember Your God My soul is downcast within me; therefore, I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar… By day the LORD directs His love, at night His song is with me— a prayer to the God of my life. Psalm 42:6-8

Remembering has always been an important act in the life of Israel.   Memory for Israel was never as simple as bringing to mind a set of feelings or facts. Almost without exception, a call to remember for Israel was a call to action. Israel was called to remember Yahweh in order to remain faithful to Him. Israel was called to remember the commandments and keep them. And Israel was called to remember God’s wonderful works and worship Him. But here, rather than remember all these things, the psalmist focuses on remembering God himself – “I will remember you from the land of Jordan.”

He was no longer focused on his past worship experiences.  He turned his focus to his God.  So, the first battle on the road to wholeness with God is to remember your God. And what does he remember? “By day the LORD directs His love” He remembers that his God is Yahweh, the Covenant God who exists to bless His people.  And he reminds himself that Yahweh exists to bless him. And now he remembers why this is.  It’s because he is the objectof Yahweh’s “hesed” love, His merciful love.  His faithful, steadfast unchanging gracious love.  And that’s what we need to remember too.

When God seems distant, when you’re going through a season of spiritual dryness, when you’re experiencing the dark night of the soul, remember your God.  Remember who He is.  Remember He loves you.  You are the object of His steadfast. In the past, God saw plight; you were lost and alone in your sin, without hope and without God in the world.  But then He gave you mercy in Jesus.  He took away your sin.  He redeemed your life from the pit and sat you on the ROCK. He did this for you to bring you to Himself and make you part of His family.  His love is always directed to you.  You are the object of His love.  You are His beloved always. Remember your God!

That’s the first thing you can do when you’re going through seasons of dryness, when you’re sad, confused and lost in your relationship with God. Remember your God.  But that’s not all you can do. There’s a few more things you can do and they’re found in our final verse.  Let me read this final verse for us: Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God. Psalm 42:11  So, a second thing you can do is…

• Stop and Ask Yourself Why Stop listening to your own self talk and start talking to yourself.

Be honest with yourself.  Don’t ignore what’s going on.  Ask, why am I feeling this way? Have I been hit or miss in my worship?  Have I been discouraged by unbelievers? Have I been overwhelmed by trials?  Have I neglected God?  Be honest with yourself.

Welsh Preacher D. Martyn-Lloyd Jones speaks to this matter of talking to yourself. He says, “You have to take yourself in the hand, you have to address yourself, preach to yourself, question yourself. This self of ours, this other man within us, has got to be handled. Do not listen to him; turn to him; speak to him; condemn him; upbraid him; exhort him; encourage him; remind him of what you know, instead of listening placidly to him and allowing him to drag you down and depress you.” Stop listening to your sad story and start telling God your struggles. Get clear on why your soul is sick, but then start doing something about it…

• Preach to Yourself Twice in this Psalm, the psalmist commands himself to put his hope in God. He starts with his feelings and then commands his soul to do what he knows is right. To put his confidence in God, to believe in his God, to trust in Him.  We need to do the same.

Preach to yourself.  Preach the gospel to yourself.  Remind yourself that God still loves you when you’ve sinned.  Tell yourself God never rejects His children and always takes them back.  Tell yourself that there’s nothing you can do that will make God love you more; and there’s nothing so bad that you’ve done that will make God love you any less. Preach to yourself that God is not done with you and has great plans for you. Preach the gospel to yourself.

Preach the blessings of Christ to yourself.  This is one I’ve always done when my soul is troubled or I’m feeling spiritually dry.  I go to the letter to the Ephesians, and I remind myself of all the truth that is mine in Christ.  I preach to myself that I am blessed in Christ, that I am loved in Christ.  I remind myself that God has always wanted me.  That He chose me even though He knew the worst about me.  He redeemed me and marked me with His seal of approval – the promised Holy Spirit.  Preach to yourself that you belong to God forever – that you are His treasured possession. There are all kinds of truths you can preach to yourself and the more you do this, the more you’ll find that when Jesus said, “the truth will set you free” it will.  His word will encourage your heart and heal your soul.  Preach to yourself.  And finally,

Look to Your Future   The psalmist’s final words are these: Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.  I love that little phrase, “for I will yet praise Him.”  because he is looking past his present turmoil, to a time where he knows he will know the joy of the Lord again. He praised God in the past. He will praise Him again.   I love this because it shows a confidence in his future relationship with God.

And sometimes we need to do this too.  You just fight through your sadness.  Fight through your spiritual drought.  Certainly, acknowledge it, but don’t wallow in it.  Fight for what you once had.  Fight for your relationship with God.  Fight for your future.  Hold onto your hope.  You have a Savior who saved you!  You have a God who directs His love to you.  You’ve had good times with Him in the past.  They will come again.  He is coming again.  This world, and your present sadness will pass.

You will yet praise Him.  The best is yet to come!  And that is certain.  For God promises that one day, you will see Him face to face; and one day He will wipe away ever tear.  One day there will be no more suffering.  There will be no more separation.  One day, you will be with God.  What a day that will be!

But until then, don’t loose heart. All of us will face times of spiritual dryness, and even turmoil in our relationship with God.  But when those times come, remember your God, stop listening to your sad story, preach to yourself and hold on to the hope God has given you in Jesus.  Fight through the dark night of the soul and God will bring you though to Him.  Let’s pray.