Well, before we come to our topic for this evening of some biblical helps for times of despair, I ask you please to pray with me and ask the Lord's blessings on our time. Let's pray. Our Father, we are so thankful that it is because of the working of the Holy Spirit that we can call you our Father. We are thankful that the regenerating work of that blessed third person of the Holy Trinity has quickened many of us in this room so that we know you and we are known by you. We're thankful, Lord, again that you have taken out for many of us hearts of stone and you have put in hearts of flesh. So now we love you and we praise you and we desire to hear from you. Oh God, we pray then that this night you would speak to us from Holy Scripture. We ask, O God, that as Paul prayed to the Thessalonian church, that your word indeed would run and have free course among us. O God, we pray that you would heal the hurting, that you would strengthen those who are weak, that you would come by your mighty truth and be a balm to our souls. Do us good, we pray, O Lord. Lift up our drooping spirits. We ask these things in that name. of Jesus Christ, our risen and exalted Lord. Amen. In the introduction of his book entitled Spiritual Depression, Its Causes and Its Cure, Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones makes the following remarks. He says, in the Psalms, we are able to watch noble souls struggling with the problems of themselves. For here, they talk to themselves and their souls, bearing their hearts, analyzing their problems, chiding and encouraging themselves. Lloyd-Jones says in the Psalms, sometimes God's people are related, other times they are depressed, but they are always honest with themselves and this is why they are of such value to us if we are honest with ourselves. Well, brethren, I believe that the good old Dr. Lloyd-Jones has wonderfully summed up the true value of why it is that we, as God's people, love the Psalms. The Psalms are so wonderful to us because they meet us right where we are in life, whether we are happy or sad, whether we are at times of victory or loss, or whether we are at times of triumph or at tribulation. Well, this evening, we come to a psalm which will be extremely helpful for us to consider. And I say this because in this text, the psalmist gives us some excellent insights for how it is that we are to deal with those times in our lives when things are not going well for us. Now, regardless of who we are, all of us, while living in a fallen world to one degree or another, we all will face hardships. Who knows, but perhaps you're here this evening, and this is what is true of you. Maybe you're here tonight, and you've come with great burdens on your soul. And so again, I say that this is what's true of all of us. None of us escape hardships, for as the great Reformed Baptist Charles Haddon Spurgeon rightly said, the strong are not always vigorous, the brave not always courageous, and the joyous not always happy. Well for this evening again we have a psalm to consider which should be a great help to us in this regard and this psalm is Psalm 13 and I ask you to please turn with me there in your Bible. Psalm 13 which is an individual lament psalm that was written by David is a psalm which has given countless numbers of people great comfort in their souls. And as we begin to consider these words together tonight, let's do so by noting firstly in our Bibles in verses 1 and 2 of this psalm, David's perplexity, his perplexity. Psalm Number 13, verses 1 and 2. Now, as David begins his psalm, he starts off on a very low note without stating the exact reason for his sorrow. Here it may be that Saul and his men were after David, but whatever the case is, As David thinks about his difficult circumstance, he feels as many of us do in times like these, namely, that God has left him. Here, as David considers his condition, he says to God no less than four times in these opening words, how long, literally, until when, O Lord. Now, the old expression is true, which says, the time flies when you're having fun. And to be sure, it does. Ah, but dear friends here this evening, I say that when we are in the midst of hardships, time moves painfully slow. Time moves excruciatingly slow. And so again, David says here, first in verse 1, look at the words in your Bibles, he writes, how long? You get the sense of the duration, the time. How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever? How long? It's painfully long, David's saying. Will you hide your face from me? Well, clearly. This repetition, how long, how long, how long, how long is very indicative of how bad this situation was that David was currently in. Here we see, not that he was using vain repetition, but rather that his heart was so broken as he desperately wants to know God's timetable for his own deliverance, here David cries out, quite literally saying, how long, O Lord, will you continually forget me? He says, how long will you continually hide your face from me? That is to say, your good favor. I want to be sure. This was a desperate cry from a desperate soul here as the sweet psalmist of Israel made his complaint to the Lord. He's beseeching him to break his silence and to reveal his grace to him since it seems as though God is being indifferent to his Now, in view of this, we do well to ask, why is it at times in our lives, especially when we're in trouble, that God at times seems far from us? I mean, of course, while we know that, According to the Bible, this is not the case, for as we're told in Hebrews 13 and verse 5, God will never leave us nor forsake us. However, again, the question is this. Why is it that at times like these, sometimes, this seems to be the case? Well, to be honest, dear friends, it's really It's really hard to tell. Again, we know that this is certainly not the case, that God is not far from us, and clearly our emotions could be clouding things. However, perhaps in times like these, God allows us to feel this way so that he might deepen our faith in him, for he says in his word that the just, that is to say, those who have been justified by faith alone in Christ alone, the just shall live by faith. Furthermore, no doubt I'm sure that God allows us to go through times like these again where he seems apparently distant from us. He allows us to go through times like these so that our trust in his glorious promises might become more solid. Friends, in times like these God no doubt wants us to know that all of his promises toward us are yes and amen in Jesus Christ our Lord. Now as a side note, As a side note, I should say here that if you've ever felt that God has abandoned you, I want to say that I don't think that this disposition of heart is necessarily sinful. itself. In other words, if you've ever gotten real desperate before God, wondering where in the world He is in the midst of your situation, I want you to know that like the psalmist here, and in many other places in the Psalms, such expressions are very common from the people of God, and therefore I don't think it's sinful, and such Psalms as Psalm 6, Psalm 35, and Psalm 89 make all of this plain. Well, as David continues, to voice his complaint to the Lord. How long, he says next in verse 2, note the words in your Bibles, he writes again. How long for the third time shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long, fourth time, will my enemy be exalted over me? Now, what do we see here but that the experience of God's apparent absence in this situation was having a negative effect upon David's soul. Here, he says that it caused him to look within. whenever this happens, this certainly is never good. No, I say that the moment we get our eyes off of Christ and His love for us is plainly demonstrated in His cross work on our behalf, we will be swallowed up with despair forgetting how much God has actually loved us in His Son. But again, This was David here, and so he says to himself in 2A, how long shall I take counsel, literally advice in my soul. Now this phrase here. take counsel in my soul could be understood as David saying, how long shall I wrestle with my own thoughts? Here the idea is that because David believed that God wasn't near him in order to cheer and to guide him and to help him, that he was forced to figure out things all on his own. concerning how he might escape from his troubles, and in doing this, he feels as though his own resources have failed him. Now maybe you have found yourself, like David, in some of your own trials. Lord, how long? Where are you, O God? And then you start devising your own plans, how you might get out of this situation, how you might get out of that hard spot, and you find yourself coming up short. O God, this hasn't helped. O God, please come and rescue me. Well, David asked the Lord, next then in 2B, how long, note the language, will my enemy or my enemies, plural, the word enemy being used here as a collective noun, how long will they be exalted or how long will they triumph over me? Now in truth, It may not be that David's enemies were actually triumphing over him. It could be, but it may also be that his heart was just so broken that he, or rather that things seemed to him that he was losing ground on every front. And I'm sure that some of you like David have felt this way at times as well. Oh friends, you know how it goes when you're down in the dumps. Everything, no matter if things are good or not, everything seems to be going bad. So that you cry out with Jacob of old, saying in Genesis 42 and verse 36, all these things are against me. Well this was David here at this point in the psalm. Maybe his enemies were triumphing over him, Maybe they weren't, but this is what he was sensing in his own soul because of his current situation. Well, after being in such a spirit of turmoil, we see secondly in verses 3 and 4 that David, as a true child of God, finally turns his eyes away from himself to the Lord, and as he does, let's note together his petitions. Now, what we begin to see here at this time of his complaining, or rather what we begin to see here really, is that now his time of complaining is over and now David is starting to pray. The question of, does God forget his people forever? Will he go on hiding his face? The answer to the question is, of course, no. And so in finally realizing where his hope was to be found, David now turns to the Lord and makes three requests of him. And so he says in 3A, noted in your Bibles, he writes, first request, consider. Second request, hear me, O Lord, my God. And then the third request, enlighten my eyes. Well, first then we need to ask, what does the word consider here? mean in the verse? Well, simply put, it means to look upon. That's what it means. It means to take regard for someone. Here the point is that after sensing that God had overlooked him, David was now saying to his Heavenly Father with great urgency, O Lord, That is, O Jehovah, the God of promise, my God, that is, my Elohim, the God of great power. David saying, O Jehovah, my Elohim, please take notice of me. Well, having asked God for his eye, David goes on next to ask him for his ear. And so he says next in our verse here, or more literally, answer me in this time of difficulty. Thirdly then, he asked the Lord to enlighten his eyes. You see it there in the verse. And so what does this mean? Well, the commentators are divided. as to the exact meaning of the words, and while some suggest that the language here means to restore one's vigor, as it is in Psalm 38 and verse 10, since bright eyes were a sign of good health, I think here that the point is closer to how Steve Lawson records it when he says in his commentary on the Psalms that David here was requesting divine wisdom from above in order to see his situation from God's perspective. Here the point seems to be that he was asking Jehovah to give him understanding. so that he could comprehend his circumstance aright. Well, having made his threefold petition to the Lord again, he says, consider and hear and enlighten my eyes. David goes on next to ground his petition in a threefold reason for why the Lord should answer him. And this is seen in the remaining words under this heading. Note the words again. David writes and says, Lord, consider and hear me, enlighten my eyes. And then he states the rationale for all of this when he writes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemies say I have prevailed against him, lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am moved. You've got to love these biblical arguments that David makes before the Lord. And friends, I say that taking David's example here. For yourself, you can do the same before God. It's good to make good and godly arguments. David says, I've got a three-fold reason, a three-fold basis, Lord, for why you should help me in this situation. And so again, biblical arguments before God, graciously bringing them to the Lord, laying out our case. I believe, as David did, you can do the same. Here David says first, Lord, please look and hear me lest I be killed." Now this is what the language means when he speaks here of the sleep of death. Here the words are not a reference to the false doctrine commonly called soul sleep. And I say this because both the Old and the New Testaments know of no doctrine and life after death is that which is expressed in many places in Scripture. But secondly, David says here to the Lord, consider and hear me lest or in case my enemies will say that they have prevailed against me." Now David has already spoken of his enemies back in verse 2 of the psalm and so here again he mentions them. Clearly the point is that the current situation, the threat at hand is a very real So now he essentially says, oh God, defend me for if not my enemies, Lord, yes, your enemies will have victory over me. Thirdly then, David says here at the end of verse four, look at it again, Lord, please consider me. and hear and answer me lest those who trouble me will rejoice. They will be glad when I am moved or shaken." And so what was David, speaking of here, what he was speaking about was his detractors gloating over his downfall. Here he was speaking about the wicked glorying when he is moved from his steadfastness, which up until this point in the psalm he has been able to maintain. And so he says, Oh Lord, please do not let this happen. Well, In all that David has said here, again, I believe that his basis for God considering and hearing his prayer was very sound. I mean, here he's desiring, firstly, that his life would be spared. Secondly, he's desiring that God's name would be honored. My enemies and your enemies, O Lord. And then here he's desiring that the mouth of his detractors would be stopped, which are all righteous desires. having borne his soul to the Lord, having carried all of his burdens to God at this time before the Lord his God. On what note does David end this psalm? Having started off by feeling abandoned by the Lord, left to himself, etc., what was the end result? Well, we're given The answer, finally, in verses 5 and 6, when after speaking about his perplexity and then having made his petitions to the Lord, David now sets forth his proclamations. His proclamations here, as he's now looking up to God from where ultimately all of his help would come. He says that despite his circumstances, note the words in your Bibles, he writes, but I have trusted in your mercy. My heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord. Why David? Because he has dealt bountifully with me. Now what? A great difference has occurred in the life of David, God's servant, at this time by God's grace working in his heart, right? I mean, what a change has happened in his life in but a few verses. as the case typically is in the Psalms. Now dear friends, remember with me that when David started this psalm, he was in great distress. Remember that at first he was crying. At first he was in great peril. Ah, but what do we see now that instead of great distress, there's great delight. Instead of crying, there's a great calm. And instead of peril, he's praising his God. Glory be to his name. What a beautiful thing. This is to see, in this psalm, to see what David has gone through by God's grace in his heart, right? Here, while not at all negating his difficult circumstances or denying the reality that he has been in a spiritual lull, David is experiencing a great truth that many of us in Christ experience, namely, that weeping endures for a night, but joy comes in the morning. What David says first in 5a, but I have trusted in your mercies. Now you see it there in your English Bibles how the words but I are emphatically front, emphatically first rather, in the sentence. Here the sense in the wording is that despite what David had experienced, he nonetheless trusted or placed his confidence in God's mercies. Here, David's making a great contrast. Even though all these things have been going on in my life, David says, but I have trusted in your mercy. Of course, the word mercy here is important for us to consider. So what does the word mean? Well, the word mercy here speaks of God's unfailing covenantal faithfulness to us as people. This word speaks of God's covenantal love, which absolutely knows no end. And so here we see that by God's doing, David was saying that even though his situation was bleak, now he was resting in God's unfailing grace, which never quits. Well, because this was the case, what did such a trust produce in him? he tells us next when he says in 5b when he writes noted in your Bibles again he says that his heart that is to say his innermost being all that he was shall rejoice in God's salvation That is to say, in his deliverance of his situation at this time. Now, recall with me how from verse four of the Psalm, that David said that his enemies who troubled him would rejoice when he was moved. Ah, but I asked, what do we see now? But that David says that because God would help him, his heart would rejoice because surely Jehovah would rescue him. They would rejoice in his downfall. Now David says, I will rejoice because God will deliver me. Well, as David was trusting in the Lord by God's grace and rejoicing in his presence, despite the situation, he goes on to say finally in verse six, look at it again, that he will sing to the Lord. And this was because he has dealt bountifully or abundantly with him. Now I love how this psalm ends on such a such a high note. It's really quite wonderful. Here we see that David has gone from singing the blues to blessing God. We see that he's gone from the cellar of despair to the heights of glory. And all of this was because he now had his eyes back on the Lord who always brings his people comfort when they do this. Well, what a beautiful and very important and informative psalm this is, right? Brethren, I say that it's a glorious psalm and it's very instructive for all of us because, as I said in the beginning of the message, all of us will go through times of trial even as David went through throughout his life. All of us, even the most optimistic among us, will experience trials of one sort or another For as Job said in Job 5 and verse 7, as sparks fly upwards, so a man is born into trouble. And so in view of this, I want to draw out some practical lessons in order to help you for times like these. Having worked through David's own personal experience, we need to ask now, what teaching can we take for ourselves, for our hardships, for whatever we might currently be experiencing or for what we might experience in the days ahead. And so there are three things that I want to say, dear brothers and sisters here tonight. And the first is this, in all of our times of trial, we like David must move from complaint to prayer. from complaint to prayer. Now, of course, this is what David did in the psalm. You see, the point is, David did not just go on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on with his complaint to God, saying how bad things were. No, rather, after bearing his heart to the Lord, crying out, how long, oh Lord, how long, how long, how long? We see the beginning at verse three, he stopped complaining and started beseeching. He went from complaining to calling upon the Lord. My dear ones, David finally got to the point where he stopped grousing and finally he gave himself to calling upon Jehovah. And so he says, consider me and hear me, O Lord, my God. And so I ask you here tonight, where are you at in your trial that you might be having currently in your life? I ask you, dear friend, whether you're experiencing a hardship right now or you might experience a hardship in the days ahead, where will you be at with this whole matter? Will it be all complaining for you? Or will it be a turning from the complaining to getting your eyes off your situation onto the Lord Christ and begin beseeching him for help in time of need? The first lesson. In our hardships, as some of you I know no doubt are going through, where are you at at the present time? Is the day of complaint over? And has the day of petition started? I hope so, friends. Because here again is how we begin to find relief, even as David did. He's down in the dumps, but as he begins to come out, we see that the very first thing that he did to help him in this regard was to go from complaining as it were, to looking to the Lord by faith in prayer for help. Secondly then, we learn from the psalm, that in times of despair, we must not only pray, but we must also trust the Lord. We must trust the Lord. Dear friends, listen to me when I say that faith in God, in Christ, in times of trials is a crucial key in times like these. Trust, faith, not doubt, but faith, not feelings, but true belief that our heavenly Father knows our situation all together and that he has promised to work the entire thing together for our good. Faith in God. Faith in His promises. And so where are you at tonight, my dear Christian friend? Have you gone from complaining to praying? And now, in seeking God in prayer, are you now believing His Word and believing who He is? That He indeed will help. That He indeed will intervene for your good. Faith in God. Trust in God. Again, recalling to your mind as you work through David's experience, he prayed, he received help. And then secondly, he had faith in his God. He looked to the Lord from whence came his help. Well, finally then, by way of a lesson from our son, not only must we pray to God in our times of trial, and not only have faith in him, oh Lord I'm going to believe regardless of how it looks, regardless of how things seem or feel. But lastly now we must also reflect back on all that God has done for us in days gone by, remembering that as he has done for us in the past, so he will do for us in the future once again. Notice this with me. As David sets it forth in verse six of the psalm, look what he says. He writes, I will sing to Jehovah. And his reason for this was because God has, note the past tense, He has in previous days dealt bountifully with him. And so what's David doing here? What I believe he was doing at bare minimum was recalling that since God had always rescued him in times of need and days gone by, therefore he could rest in his current situation. Friends, what I think David is doing here is recollecting all the days of his life as a believer, and as he thought about how God had acted on his behalf again and again, no doubt remembering his own words, for example, as set forth in Psalm 23 when he wrote, that the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not lack. I believe that David found encouragement for his soul. He remembered, he recalled how God had been so good to him, and that there was not one situation that the Lord did not eventually come and deliver his servant. He knew the Lord was his shepherd, his very present help in need, and David found encouragement for his soul. And so I ask you here tonight, Is this recalling, this retelling, as it were, of God's past mercies to you? What do you do, my dear believing friend in times of trouble? I ask, do you obey the words of the psalmist when he said in Psalm 105 and verse 5, remember his marvelous works which he has done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth? If you're like me at times, you have to confess that sadly, you tend to forget these things. At times you tend to forget these things. Brethren, I don't know why it is, but it seems to me that when at first a serious problem comes into my life, that I tend to forget all that God has done for me in the past. And so I get discouraged at the present time. May the Lord help us then. to begin afresh tonight, to learn from David's example here in our psalm, and to take courage from him. May it be that for all of us who are in Christ, that Jesus' great past deliverances for us, especially that great deliverance from the wrath of God through the sacrifice of himself on the cross on our behalf, will be that which will greatly encourage us for any future problems that we face. Amen? Let's pray. Father, we thank you again for your word. We're thankful, Lord, that it is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword. Father, having considered David tonight, we pray, O Lord, that the lessons from his life will be that which is not theoretical for us, O God, but very practical and warm and personal. We pray, O God, that in our times of trial like David, we will pray to you. We ask, O God, that we will look to you by faith and that we, like him, will remember all of your past mercies to us and that we will be strengthened for present day trouble. O God, we pray, and I pray, for any struggling saint here tonight, that the words of this text will be a great encouragement to their lives. O God, we pray, by the Spirit, sanctify the words of our passage to our hearts. Put them deeply within us, O God, that we might be unmovable for the days ahead and for all that we might face. We pray. And ask all of these things in that wonderful and glorious name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.