{"id":910,"date":"2009-10-25T04:01:18","date_gmt":"2009-10-25T04:01:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2009\/10\/sunday-inspiration-from-the-high-calling-73.html"},"modified":"2009-10-25T04:01:18","modified_gmt":"2009-10-25T04:01:18","slug":"sunday-inspiration-from-the-high-calling-73","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2009\/10\/sunday-inspiration-from-the-high-calling-73.html","title":{"rendered":"Sunday Inspiration from The High Calling"},"content":{"rendered":"

Has God Forgotten to Be Gracious?<\/h3>\n

READ Psalm 77:1-20<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0Has God forgotten to be gracious?
\nHas he slammed the door on his compassion?<\/p>\n

Psalm 77:9<\/a><\/p>\n

Psalm 77, written by Asaph, begins with a profound expression of anguish. The psalmist has found himself in\u00a0a terribly difficult and painful situation. He has cried out to God, even shouting and praying all night. When he thinks of God, he moans with unfulfilled longing (77:1-3).
\nThen Asaph begins to ask questions that are stunning in their honesty: \u201cHas the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again be kind to me? Is his unfailing love gone forever? Have his promises permanently failed? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he slammed the door on his compassion?\u201d (77:7-9). These six questions all can be answered by the simple word \u201cNo.\u201d No, God has not rejected Asaph forever. No, God will not \u201cnever be kind\u201d to him again. And so forth and so on. After all, when God revealed his essential nature and hallowed name to Israel, he made it clear that he is \u201cThe God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness\u201d (Exo 34:6). So why would Asaph wonder if God had forgotten to be gracious? And why would this question show up in the Psalms, the inspired word of God?
\nPsalm 77 models for us exceptional honesty in prayer. It shows us that God cares more about our openness with him than that we get all of our theology right when we talk with him. Oh, to be sure, orthodoxy matters a great deal. But sometimes our efforts to say all the right things in prayer compromises our genuineness. The Psalms in general, and Psalm 77 in particular, encourage us to pray with \u201cno holds barred.\u201d We don\u2019t have to be afraid of asking God tough questions, or even of challenging his goodness. What God wants from us, is not all the right words, but us . . . our full, true selves. God wants relationship, not with some whitewashed image of ourselves, but with us.
\nWhen we pray honestly, holding nothing back, we enter into a deeper and truer relationship with the living God. In the context of this relationship we will discover, again and again, that God has not forgotten to be gracious. Yes, sometimes his grace seems strangely hidden. But we who know God through Christ can always be sure that nothing in all creation can separate us from God\u2019s love and grace.
\nQUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION<\/strong>: Have you ever prayed like Asaph in Psalm 77? When? What happened? Do you feel free to express what\u2019s really going on inside of you in prayer? Why or why not?
\nPRAYER<\/strong>: Thank you, dear Father, for the example of Asaph. His honesty inspires me to tell you the truth, not only when I\u2019m rejoicing, but also when I am hurting, worrying, or doubting.
\nThank you, Lord Jesus, for being our great High Priest. You understand our weaknesses and temptations. Because of what you have done for us as Priest and Sacrifice, we have even greater reason to come before the Father with boldness, confident that we will find mercy and grace at his throne.
\nAll praise be to you, Triune God, because you will never forget to be gracious! Hallelujah! Amen<\/em>.
\nA P.S. from Mark
\n<\/strong>
\nMy book No Holds Barred: Wrestling With God in Prayer<\/em><\/a> explores the themes of this reflection in much greater depth.<\/p>\n

_________________________________________________<\/p>\n

<\/a>Would you like to receive a Daily Reflection like this one in your email inbox each morning?\u00a0 <\/strong>
\nHere’s how . . . . <\/em><\/strong>
\nThis devotional comes from The High Calling of Our Daily Work <\/em>(www.thehighcalling.org<\/a>), a wonderful website about work and God<\/em>. You can read my Daily Reflections<\/a> there, or sign up to have them sent to your email inbox<\/a> each day. This website contains lots of encouragement for people who are trying to live out their faith in the workplace.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Has God Forgotten to Be Gracious? READ Psalm 77:1-20 \u00a0Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he slammed the door on his compassion? Psalm 77:9 Psalm 77, written by Asaph, begins with a profound expression of anguish. The psalmist has found himself in\u00a0a terribly difficult and painful situation. He has cried out to God, even…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-910","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sunday-inspiration"],"yoast_head":"\nSunday Inspiration from The High Calling - Mark D. 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Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/910","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=910"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/910\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=910"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=910"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=910"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}