Psalm 42:5-8 Why are you cast down, O my soul?

Have you ever gotten in an argument with someone, and, in a burst of anger, said something so wrong that you had to stop and ask yourself, “why did I say that?”? Or, have you ever been experiencing the greatest day, and then one little thing went wrong, and you just fell to pieces? You had to tell others, “I don’t know why I just can’t stop crying!”

Sometimes our emotions seem out of our control. That is what David was experiencing in Psalm 42. Please read Psalm 42:5-8.

David is in the middle of some great bout of depression. We don’t know exactly what happened to make him so miserable. It could be some great attack by an enemy. Or, it could be that nothing in particular happened; he’s just having a rough couple of days. Whatever the case may be, as a believer in God, David knows that he should be experiencing joy.

It is fine for a believer to mourn with those who mourn, or to weep over unrighteousness, or even to feel shame, or guilt, or sadness. These emotions will come upon all of us. Yet, one of the blessed gifts of the Holy Spirit is the gift of joy. Even in the midst of sorrow, believers can have joy! Even in the middle of tragedy, believers can have joy! Even when we are in dark times of mourning, believers can have joy! That is one of the things that sets believers apart from the rest of the world and makes the world want to know how they can have what we have.

David is going through that dark time of the soul, and he asks himself, “why are you cast down, O my soul?” Essentially asking himself, “Where is your joy?!” “Why won’t you focus on God and remember all the good that He has given you!?”

David does not want to stay in a depression. So, he needs to remind himself that his hope is in God. God has worked incredible deeds in the past, which have led to his salvation. Therefore, God can be trusted to work incredible miracles in the future. Rather than focusing on his sorrow, David chooses to remind himself of the great works God has done. He even names the locations! “Don’t be so down, O my soul! Remember what God did for your salvation in the land of the Jordan? What about the awesome deeds He worked at Mt. Hermon? And who could forget His marvelous work at Mount Mizar!”

This is one of the great benefits of journaling, or otherwise keeping a record of answered prayer. When we go through times of trial and tribulation, when we go through the dark valleys of the soul, we can remind ourselves of all the reasons we have to rejoice. God has lavished innumerable blessings upon us that far outweigh the misery of our current circumstances, but we need our logic to point this out.

Our emotions are fickle. When they don’t line up with reality, we must remind ourselves of the truth. The truth is that God has poured His steadfast love upon those who have trusted in Him. This outpouring of love is so great, that it is like waterfalls or great waves of love being lavished upon us. Let us turn our eyes upon Him and remember how much He loves us. Then we can encourage our soul to once again rejoice.