Psalm 22:1 Why?

"My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?"    Psalm 22:1      Jesus' words, sometimes our words, too!
       April 15, 2013 Morning devotional from Charles Spurgeon, "Morning and Evening"

      No other place so well shows the griefs of Christ as Calvary, and no other moment at Calvary is so full of agony as that in which His cry rends the air____" My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" At this moment, physical weakness was united with acute mental torture from the shame and disgrace though which He had to pass. To make His grief culminate with emphasis, He suffered spiritual agony surpassing all expression, resulting from the departure of His Father's presence. This was the black midnight of His horror. It was then that He descended the abyss of suffering. No man can enter into the full meaning of these words. Some of us think at times that we could cry, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?" There are seasons when the brightness of our Father's smile is eclipsed by clouds and darkness, but let us remember that God never does really forsake us. It is only a seeming forsaking of us, but in Christ's case it was a real forsaking. In our case, our cry is often dictated by unbelief. In His case, it was the utterance of a dreadful fact, for God had really turned away from Him for a season. Since even the thought that He has forsaken us gives us agony, what must the woe of the Savior have been when He exclaimed, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" 


   *This is what we all feel at times when bad things happen in our lives, some feel forsaken for a moment, then turn to the God Who loves them. Speaking the words, "I love You and I trust You, Lord Jesus, even in this time. You will be my comfort, my peace, and my strength even in this. Help me O Father to stay close to You."   Some people turn from God in anger, mistakenly believing that He would cause them hurt and pain on purpose. BUT God........Loves us even now more than ever and longs to be close to us, He does not forsake His children, He holds them close. As a parent I know that sometimes in our children's lives we have to hold them close when they do not want to be held. They rage against our arms, kicking and screaming against the loving arms that hold them no matter what! This is what we do as children of Almighty God at times, yet He holds us with strong and loving arms! 
         One year ago on April 15, 2012 some dear friends of ours lost their 21 year old son to a car accident, they grieve as we do.  In February 2012 my dearest friend Marsha went to be with the Lord, her loved ones grieve as we do. In October 2011 my sweet brother Johnny went to be with the Lord, we all grieve. On February 16, 2010 we lost our precious son, Tyler, when he went to be with our Lord, we still grieve. On April 15, 2013 Boston lost 3 people and many more were injured beyond belief, their loved ones grieve, America grieves with them. BUT God has not forsaken His own, He holds them close, He longs to comfort them and us with His great love, even if we sometimes kick and scream!  We do not grieve as those who have no hope! Our great hope and comfort is in our God!!  He has not and He will not forsake His children, even for a moment! Hold on to this!