What do You Get from Troubles?
17. The righteous cry and the Lord listens and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18. The Lord is near them that are broken hearted; and saves such as be of a contrite spirit.
19. Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers them out of them all.
Psalm 34:17-19
Ready or Not – Here it Comes
What do you do in troubled times? A better question is what will God do in troubled times? While both these questions may be difficult to answer, we are certain of some things when it comes to trouble. First, no one enjoys trouble. Second, life is full of trouble. Third, while troubles may be numerous, none of them will last forever. The key issue is that we often associate trouble as a bad thing and something that should be avoided at all costs. The truth is, God uses trouble to shape character, to forge endurance, and to reveal His Glory. What do you get from trouble?
While we may not like trouble, God sends those times into our lives to achieve His purpose and to work His plan. Even Jesus, God’s Son, faced trouble. The Bible says Jesus learned obedience through the things He suffered. Hebrews 5:8-9. So, before we discard all suffering as bad, maybe we should learn what the Scriptures says about trouble.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous. This reveals that there are a multitude of troubles as well as many kinds of troubles. For this reason, I would like to introduce our first terms – perpetual trouble and diverse trouble. Both can be explained in one statement that we use; “if ain’t one thing, it’s another.” All kinds of trouble and they seem to keep coming. We live in a troubled world with wars and conflicts. We live in a world with plagues and diseases. We live in a world of hunger. While we think that this problem is prevalent in undeveloped nations, we’d better think again.
Trouble impacts all lands and all people including the United States. A single mother testified that she was doing quite well as manager of restaurant. She juggled her schedule to raise her children, move up the ladder, and invest in her 401K plan and all was good until trouble came. The spring of 2020 shut down her job and almost shut down her life. At the same time, many lost both their livelihood and their life to trouble that came as a worldwide pandemic. The health loss, the economic disaster, and the social damages were enormous. While we reflect on the losses, we must also remember that somewhere in the dark cloud there is a silver lining. Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers them out of them all.
Now that this perpetual trouble has morphed into yet another phase, we are left with questions of how long. This brings us to our second set of terms – proclaimed faith and produced faith. Proclaimed faith is when I talk about how much faith I have. The processed faith is when faith has gone through the trial and through the trouble. When people don’t have trouble, they generally talk a good spiritual game. Only those who have gone through the fiery test can really tell you what it is like to trust in God. While I might talk about faith to sound religious, it is my faith that talks when it goes through the test. That is produced faith that God brings out of us in the time of trouble. The question is what do you get from troubles?
Know the Cause of the Trouble
It is very interesting that the writer of Psalm 34 recalls a time in his life where troubles abounded. Scholars say that this song was written by David, Israel’s beloved king, during the time that he was in the Philistine camp and was pretending to be crazy. In other words, this was a situation that David got himself into. This brings us to the third term regarding trouble. It can be self-induced trouble caused by a mistake or a mission. No one told David to go over the enemy’s camp. As a result of his odd behavior, he was driven away from Abimelech who said, “I already have enough foolish folk in my camp, I don’t need one more to play the fool.” Strangely, as a result of that episode, David wrote this beautiful song of praise as if to say, “my praise keeps me even when I mess up.” So, what did David get from his troubles? He learned a whole new reason to praise God and to bless the Lord at all times.
While there is the self-induced trouble that results from mistakes, there is also the self-induced trouble that relates to our mission. This is what the late U.S. Congressman John Lewis referred to as “good trouble.” The prophets of the Lord got into good trouble as they confronted evil in their nation. The Disciples of our Lord got into good trouble as they dared to preach the good news of Jesus Christ everywhere and to all that would listen. The Church, through the ages, has gotten into good trouble as it has stood as a beacon of hope in a dark world. If we are to live for God, it will get us into good trouble. As John Lewis would say, “never be afraid to make some noise and get in good necessary trouble.” The question still remains, what do you get from troubles?
God’s Amazing Benefits
This wonderful Psalm announces exciting benefits for those going through times of trouble. The righteous cry and the Lord listens and delivers them out of all their troubles … The Lord is near them that are broken hearted; and saves such as be of a contrite spirit … Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers them out of them all. Based on this text, there are five tremendous benefits provided for the believer who faces troubles. This introduces us to the final term: trouble benefits.
While we think that God must be informed, the text states that God listens to our cries for mercy. He does not forget us. Listening is active engagement. God listened to the Israelites when they were in bondage. God listens to those who are persecuted. In this text, God listens to the righteous when they are in trouble.
Not only does God listen, He also delivers them out of all their troubles. He does not select certain troubles and leave other troubles. Whether the troubles are small or great, The Lord delivers His believers from them all. I am so thankful God does this for the righteous. He could have left these promises exclusively for the nation of Israel, but God is rich in mercy and delivers every righteous person regardless of where they might be and regardless of every circumstance, they find themselves in; God delivers.
The trouble benefits don’t end there. God listens, God delivers, but also God is near those who are broken hearted. One of the Sacred Names of God is Immanuel, which means “God is with us.” God could deliver us remotely from His Throne in Glory, but that is not how our Amazing God operates. He has promised never to leave us nor forsake. What a comforting thought – God is with us in the trouble. Even when our father and our mother leaves us, the Lord will never forsake us. God is with us in the trouble.
As if that were not comfort enough, God’s trouble benefits continue. God saves those who are of a contrite spirit. To be ‘contritious’ means to be remorseful or to repent of wrong. Remember how we talked about self-induced troubles? Well, even when we are wrong, God offers salvation. Even as David got himself into trouble, as many of us do, God saves us despite our being at fault. Be mindful that we must have a truly repented heart. What awesome benefits for those who admit they are wrong!
The text closes with the final benefit which repeats the earlier benefit of God’s deliverance. This time the text reflects something more massive than the trouble. It is God’s love and favor despite the troubles. Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers them out of them all. We acknowledge that troubles are many and they overwhelm us at time, but God delivers His people out of them all. What an Amazing God we serve!
In our modern times, we have the testimony of someone who endured the troubles of life, but was encouraged to write a song about it. The Reverend Timothy Wright pastored the Grace Tabernacle Church of God in Christ, Brooklyn, New York. Rev. Wright recorded “Trouble Won’t Last Always” in 1991. Later in 2000, he recorded “He Brought Me Through This” as a testimony of God’s deliverance. Little did Rev. Wright realize that tragedy was awaiting him and his family. In July 2008, he and his wife and grandson were returning to New York from a conference when they were involved in a fatal head on collision on a Pennsylvania interstate highway. The other driver was going in the opposite direction in the wrong lane. Wright lost his wife and grandson D.J. in that crash but did not lose his joy. In April 2009, Rev. Timothy Wright passed away, but before his departure he was able to testify that that God would deliver him and all who believe from their troubles and struggles of life. The final deliverance is through the corridor of death into the marvelous Paradise of Glory. Thank God, we can say, Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers them out of them all.