We’ve all experienced times in our lives where we become disappointed, anxious, and on edge. In the mornings, instead of waking up feeling refreshed and ready to start another day, we see mountains that wait before us, forests that obstruct our views, and valleys we know we’re going to have to walk through. At night, we toss and turn with various scenarios that fill our imagination; all focused on what we are currently experiencing. These days and nights adds to the unrest as it begins to settle into what feels like our very souls. There is not one person on this Earth that has not experienced days and nights like this.
Within the Old Testament, there are several verses that deal with this very topic of spiritual unrest. Within the book of Deuteronomy, there’s a verse that describes the attitude that so many of us have during times such as those: In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart wherewith thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou shalt see (Deuteronomy 28:67). In this verse, God is warning the children of Israel that if they forsake Him, there will be judgment and a spiritual unrest will arise out of it unless they remain faithful. I admit that there have been more than a few days where I have wished it was already night, just to toss and turn and later wishing for the night to end. Even Job, during the midst of the trial he faced said: Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are not his days also like the days of an hireling? As a servant earnestly desireth the shadow, and as an hireling looketh for the reward of his work: So am I made to possess months of vanity, and wearisome nights are appointed to me. When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? and I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day (Job 7:1-4).
David also faced his days and nights of unrest and describes what so many of us have experienced so well: I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart. Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee (Psalms 38:6-9). There are times when the hardest thing is to face our unrest, to try and learn its source, and overcome it. Even Christians have taken solace in the “cures” of the world that includes frivolous shopping, drugs, alcohol, risky behaviors, and even suicide to find relieve life’s weariness. Sadly, many of us are so busy with the things in our own lives that we have forgotten about those in our families and our church congregations that are emotionally hurting, weary, and in a state of general unrest. If they are Christians, something has happened to change the sweet relationship they had with the Lord Jesus Christ; if they are lost, they are looking for the peace that only Jesus can bring to a life shattered and out of control. Saved or unsaved, the answer is Jesus.
Often times when we feel these periods of unrest, we fail to consider the complete situation around us. Many of us look beyond our own participation in the events that led us to the point where we begin to wish our life away. Looking earlier in the chapter of Psalms already quoted, David wrote: For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness (Psalms 38:2-5). In quiet reflection and prayer to God, David was not afraid to examine his life in search of the cause of his spiritual unrest. Like us, most of David’s spiritual unrest came as a result of his own sin.
If I am honest with myself, the many times I have experienced the feelings of unrest, disappointment, or even dissatisfaction that have been the result of sin. Things like our own impatience, the getting of things that we have lusted or coveted after, or the expectation of getting something that’s “owed” to us all are all in direct opposition to how we should actually be as followers of Christ. David understood this and is why he encourages all to Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD (Psalms 27:14) and Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it (Psalms 37:34). In my life almost all my spiritual unrest has come as the result of me not waiting upon the Lord and realizing that I had made mistakes after I had done them.
In reality, we can avoid the feelings of unrest, disappointment, and dissatisfaction if we will simply turn to the Lord. If we take time to remember the writings of Solomon, he actually provides one of the best antidotes to those feelings: Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). Whatever it is, when we place it in God’s hands, we can be sure that He will not only take care of us but He will also use it for His glory so that He will draw others to Him. As David learned, It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes (Psalms 118:9); want to sow the seeds of disappointment, unrest, and dissatisfaction? Place your cares and concerns in anything or anyone but the Lord. Ignore the advice and simple truths found in scripture; It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man (Psalms 118:8). Yes, we have to depend on others such as our spouses, parents, children, coworkers, bosses, and friends; however, when we place all of our hopes, trusts and happiness in these people, we are setting ourselves up for disappointment, discontentment, and unrest. There is a peace that we get from placing our complete trust and faith in God: Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield (Psalms 115:11).
No matter how big our plans are we all have a tendency to check the local forecast before we head out to work, school, or even a family vacation. We want to be ready for whatever the weather might bring for that day. We want to know whether to pack for warm temperatures or for cold; we want to know if we need to worry about rain or take sunscreen for those bright sunny days. With the development of smart phones, some of us have even begun to check the weather nearly every hour out of the sheer need to know everything that might affect us later that day. Over the last fifteen years, there has even been a cable channel, The Weather Channel, that devotes a 24 hour cycle of the latest weather prediction for the local area. With all our changes in technology, we still are amazed when we see the stories of people caught off guard by storms. In fact, I even had someone tell me they found it nearly impossible to believe that so many people can be caught unprepared for what the weather may bring.
As many of you know, I do mention the spiritual revival I had in 2006 quite often. It is not because I am proud of what I did back then, but because I am amazed at the long-suffering, guidance, concern, and kindness of God for me. In 2006, while facing some real spiritual battles and going through my Ph.D. program, I came across three verses that would change my life: But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul (Deuteronomy 4:29), Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you (Hosea 10:12), and That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us (Acts 17:27).
