
Sometimes when life is hard and disappointing, it’s hard to understand where God is in the mix — it’s hard to put the spiritual into the physical.
But then along comes King David in the Psalms.
He gives me the tangible reality of God’s presence and the explosive passion for His child in need, especially when life is hard.
And that blesses my soul.
Sometimes Life is Hard
This morning, like David, I cried out to the Lord. About everything. About the war in Ukraine. About COVID. About my husband’s dementia. About so many friends smothering beneath overwhelm … the relentless darkness oozing across the earth.
God’s people are hurting … you may be hurting too.
The following is David’s reflection on how the Lord heard his cry and delivered him from the hands of the enemy.

Psalm 18:6-24
6 In my distress I called upon the Lord,
And cried out to my God;
He heard my voice from His temple,
And my cry came before Him, even to His ears.
God responds to the cry of David’s heart with boldness and power.
Slow down and imagine the following picture of God’s strength, and of His fury when His child is in harm’s way.
7 Then the earth shook and trembled;
The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken,
Because He was angry.
8 Smoke went up from His nostrils,
And devouring fire from His mouth;
Coals were kindled by it.
9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down
With darkness under His feet.
10 And He rode upon a cherub, and flew;
He flew upon the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness His secret place;
His canopy around Him was dark waters
And thick clouds of the skies.
12 From the brightness before Him,
His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire.

13 The Lord thundered from heaven,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14 He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe,
Lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them.
15 Then the channels of the sea were seen,
The foundations of the world were uncovered
At Your rebuke, O Lord,
At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils.
God Rescues Us When We Cry Out to Him
Can you see it? Can you feel the uproar of God? And then God reaches His child, and with the faithful love of a Father, He rescues the one who cried out to Him in their distress.
16 He sent from above, He took me;
He drew me out of many waters.
17 He delivered me from my strong enemy,
From those who hated me,
For they were too strong for me.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
But the Lord was my support.
19 He also brought me out into a broad place;
He delivered me because He delighted in me.

All because of His passionate love for us and His tender watchcare.
I love the way The Message describes verses 16-19:
16-19 But me He caught—reached all the way
from sky to sea; He pulled me out
Of that ocean of hate, that enemy chaos,
the void in which I was drowning.
They hit me when I was down,
but God stuck by me.
He stood me up on a wide-open field;
I stood there saved—surprised to be loved!
Surprised to be loved …
God Pulls Us Out of the Enemy Chaos When Life is Hard
Have you felt that way lately? I have on occasion. I cannot fathom the depth of God’s love for us. His passion for His people explodes in magnificence to help us in our time of need. We are not left to our own defenses. Almighty God is our shield. He goes before us into battle, leading us beneath His banner of love. He is our refuge, our fortress — He is our strength when we are too weary to walk on.
This morning, after crying out to the Lord in my distress, He reached all the way from sky to sea to pull me out of the enemy chaos. Enemy chaos. That’s a perfect way to describe when life is hard, isn’t it?
I’m so thankful He did.
I’m asking Him to do the same for you.
Selah
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Thank you so much for stopping by. I would love for you to share what’s on your heart in the comments below. Scroll a little farther down and you’ll see where you can leave your comments. Together, we can find the nearness of God in our darkest moments.
Sweet blessings to you,

Nan,
Thank you for sharing your passion for our God. I have been in a huge turmoil between work and my family. I have started reading my daily Jesus Calling and a devotional Bible reading and reading your post everyday, I may stray at times however, it is my mind and heart fighting me to let go of things. I need to let go of alot to bring my self healing. I have alot of anxiety from my passed and I did rededicate my life to God through baptism. I know that God is with me everyday, I just need to let everything go so my mind, heart and health will be better.
I bless you for all you are going through and still reaching out to us. I pray that things get easy for you as well as myself. Thank you Nan for your inspiration.
Tina
Bless your heart. I’m so sorry you are going through so much. I know how hard it is to let go of things, especially when you are justified in your pain. I find comfort in knowing that the Lord understands my heart, and He understands how hard it is to let go. Two things help me: 1. to recognize the strategy of the enemy. He wants to discourage us and keep us bound to the past, but God says He is making all things new. When I can see the ENEMY’S hand in my struggle, that helps me fight for God’s best for me … which means letting go of those things which have hurt us. AND 2. It helps me to consider that when I’m letting go of something the Lord has clearly instructed me to let go of, I make it an offering. I see myself placing the difficult place in my hands, and with hands outstretched toward heaven, I offer my pain as a sacrifice to the Lord. It is a powerful expression of worship. And when the evil one tries to unload it on me again, because we both know he will, I have the image of my offering in my mind and it takes me back to that place of surrender, love, and worship. That image strengthens my resolve not to pick it back up again.
I’ll be praying for you. Thank you for sharing. God’s mercies are new every morning and His love for you will never fail. Sweet blessings to you, Nan
Nan, this morning must be the morning for “crying out to God!” Thank you for this encouraging post!
Praise God! I love how we can find a common thread running through the Body of Christ. I’m so thankful you were ministered to.