The final section of Psalm 73 contains one of the greatest expressions of contentment in the psalms. “Whom have I in heaven but you?” the psalmist declares, “and earth has nothing I desire besides you.” It is one of the most tranquil and joyful moments in the psalms. But it didn’t start that way. The psalmist began in an opposite frame of mind: perturbed, discontent with his lot and envious of others. The state of mind expressed at the end of the psalm is so extremely opposite to that of the beginning. This begs the question: How did the psalmist get from the one state of mind to the other? In short, he got there through a struggle. He struggled with God. The psalmist testifies to the fact that he nearly gave up. He felt that his situation was absurd; it seemed to lack any sense. He felt that life was just arbitrary with no guiding sovereign hand in it at all. But he didn’t give up. He took his complaint before God as we see the psalmists doing again and again. He struggled with God, and, in the process, it was God that he laid hold of. He went to God looking for answers and found that God himself was the answer. He recognised that those who live without God have nothing, and those with God have everything. He no longer envied godless men but instead recognised how wonderful his lot really was. The important thing here is the process. He didn’t give up, he struggled with God. Do you need to take your struggle to God?
What are you struggling with most at the moment? Take this to God.
Read Psalm 73.
