Why Hidest Thou Thyself Ps. 10:1 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

David loved God and enjoyed great fellowship with him.  He was given the distinction of being a man after God’s own heart.  But in his life he sure had trouble.  He was anointed king as a teenager but didn’t ascend to the throne until he was 30.  He killed Goliath and was heroic in battle.  But his life was in jeopardy the whole way.  Saul became his bitter enemy.

When Saul was dead, David had opposition from four rivals who attempted to split the kingdom – Ishbosheth, Absalom, Sheba and Adonijah.  David, indeed, had lots of trouble.  At times when he needed the Lord the most, it must have seemed that God would hide from him.

We also go through trouble where it seems that God is removed from us even though we know that he will never leave us or forsake us.  We can ask with David, Why hidest thou thyself?  The Lord seems to hide sometimes to:

Separate himself from your sins – Is 59:2; Ps 66:18 – when God seems far away in prayer, the problem is not that he cannot hear – the problem may be that you have a sin in your life that is separating you from him and he wants you to get it out of your life – prayer will either make you leave off sinning, or sin will make you leave off prayer – you need to see the sin in your life the same way that God sees the sin in your life – and you need to let it go in order to restore your fellowship with the Lord – otherwise the Lord is going to seem far away when you need him.

Check you out – 2 Chr 32:31, 25 – Hezekiah received many blessings from the Lord – he had been sick, he prayed, the Lord added 15 years to his life, and gave him a sign by moving the sun back 10 degrees and then God delivered him from the king of Assyria – when the Babylonians visited to congratulate him on getting well, he showed them all of HIS treasures – God left him to try him to see what was in his heart – and he found that Hezekiah had lifted his heart up and “rendered not again according to the benefit dine unto him” – God may step back just a bit to see what’s really in your heart.

Draw you in closer – Ps 102:1-2 – trouble in your life makes your prayer more earnest – God reminds you that it is he and not you that desires the fellowship – I believe he pulls back sometimes just to see if you notice the change – early African converts prayed earnestly – each had his own prayer spot – the paths to the places of prayer were well worn – when a man started to slack off in prayer, everyone else could always tell it – they would say, “Brother, grass grows on your path.”

Conclusion: Here’s a poem that may help you draw close to God in prayer today.

I got up early one morning, and rushed right into the day; I had so much to accomplish, I didn’t have time to pray.

Troubles just tumbled about me, and heavier came each task; why doesn’t God help me, I wondered; he answered, “You didn’t ask.”

I tried to come into God’s presence, I used all my keys at the lock; God gently and lovingly chided, “Why child you didn’t knock.”

I wanted to see joy and beauty, but the day toiled on grey and bleak; I called on the Lord for the reason, he said, “You didn’t seek.”

I woke up early this morning, and paused before entering the day; I had so much to accomplish, that I had to take time to pray.