Whenever I am feeling lost or frustrated, or think God is not there, I remember the trials and tribulations of David, which prompts me to open my Bible to the Psalms. Today I opened my copy of “The Message//Remix” translation by Eugene H. Peterson and remarkably the ribbon bookmark was at Psalm 42. I decided to share it with you.
A white-tailed deer drinks
from the creek;
I want to drink God,
deep drafts of God.
I’m thirsty for God-alive.
I wonder, “Will I ever make it –
arrive and drink in God’s presence?”
I’m on a diet of tears –
tears for breakfast, tears for supper.
All day long
people knock at my door,
Pestering,
“Where is this God of yours?
These are the things I go over and over
emptying out the pockets of my life.
I was always at the head of the worshiping crowd,
right out front,
Leading them all,
eager to arrive and worship,
Shouting praises, singing thanksgiving –
celebrating, all of us, God’s feast.
Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God –
soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He’s my God.
When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse
everything I know of you,
From Jordan depths to Hermon heights,
including Mount Mizar,
Chaos calls to chaos,
to the tune of whitewater rapids.
Your breaking surf, your thundering breakers
crash and crush me.
Then God promises to love me all day,
sing songs all through the night.
My life is God’s prayer.
Sometimes I ask God, my rock-solid God,
“Why did you let me down?
Why am I walking around in tears,
harassed by my enemies?”
They’re out for the kill, these
tormentors with their obscenities,
Taunting day after day,
“Where is this God of yours?”
Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Fix my eyes on God –
soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He’s my God.
©2006 Eugene H. Peterson. The Message//Remix: The Bible in Contemporary Language
The Accidental Apologist 