Mark spoke this morning about the petition in the Lord’s Prayer (Matt 6:9-13), ‘give us today our daily bread.’ This is not only a prayer for daily provision of food; it encompasses everything which God provides for us. In Matt 4:4, Jesus has reminded us that we do not live by bread alone but by every word spoken by God. We need to pray every day for a daily portion of God, learning to trust Him in the difficult times as well as in the good times.

Matt 6:34 reminds us that it is pointless to worry about tomorrow, for each day has enough trouble of its own. We need to live in the now, seeking God on a daily basis. Prov 3:5-6 reminds us that God requires us to trust Him with all our hearts, not leaning on (relying on) our own understanding (or reasoning or thinking.) Trusting in God means giving up our burdens to the One who has promised to daily bear these (Ps 68:19). We are also urged to acknowledge Him in everything (involving Him in all aspects of our lives) so that He can direct (make straight) our paths. When we do this, we will see God’s guidance and provision in every aspect of our lives.

Are you the strong, silent type or a chattering conversationalist? Do you like to be surrounded by noise, even background noise, or are you comfortable with silence? These questions are often answered differently depending on our personality type, but it can certainly be disconcerting and even discouraging to us when God appears silent. The proverb says ‘silence is golden’, but we don’t always agree with that!

David prayed ‘do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who go down to the pit.’ (Ps 28:1, see also Ps 83:1, Ps 109:1). We find it hard when God is silent, but Eccl 3:7 reminds us that there is a time to be silent and a time to speak, and we need wisdom at times to discern God’s voice among the many voices there are clamouring to be heard. God often speaks in a gentle whisper (1 Kings 19:12) which is only heard when we have stilled and quieted our souls. (Ps 46:10, Ps 131:2) We must also acknowledge, though, that there are times when God’s voice seems completely silent and we cannot feel His presence, and the Psalms encourage us to face these times honestly, rather than pretending all is well.

One kind of silence not encouraged by the psalmists is silence over sin. David recognises that when he kept silent, he did not prosper; forgiveness only came when his sins were confessed. (Ps 32:3, 5) We are encouraged to confess our sins, not keep quiet to God over them!

The Psalms also tackle other subjects connected with speech, such as how to deal with slander and malicious talk. In Ps 38:12 & 20, we read of people talking of David’s ruin and lodging accusations against him. It is always difficult to know how to respond to situations like that, but David’s response is to imitate the deaf and mute (Ps 38:13-14) – in other words, he ignores the accusations and does not reply verbally to them. Such a response may seem cowardly to us, but the Bible is full of reminders of the dangers of rash speech (see Ps 141:3, Prov 13:3, 17:27, Eccl 5:2, James 3:6) and we are given the example of Jesus who, when accused and tried, ‘did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.’ (Is 53:7) So often, a gentle answer turns away wrath (Prov 15:1); silence too can be a potent defence against accusations. We do well to listen more than we speak and to be unafraid of silence, for even in silence, God is there.

The washing powder adverts proclaim that their detergents wash whiter than all the others; Persil Automatic washes whiter than the others  [(Persil automatic advert 1978) &  (Persil automatic advert 1982)]; Daz Ultra gets clothes ‘ultra white.’

It’s not just clothes, however, that need to be white. Sin stains our lives more effectively than mud, red wine or blood stains our clothes and we are powerless to clean sin in our own strength. David prays for God’s cleansing: ‘Scrub away my guilt, soak out my sins in your laundry. (Ps 51:2, The Message), ‘Soak me in your laundry and I’ll come out clean; scrub me and I’ll have a snow-white life.’ (Ps 51:7, The Message)

Water is, of course, traditionally the medium used in cleaning, and the Bible often talks about water in this way (see Jer 33:8, Ezek 36:5 and Eph 5:26). In Ps 51:7, however, David prays to be purged or cleansed with hyssop, and this reference to the aromatic herb reminds us that in the Bible, water is not the only method of cleansing.

In Ex 12:12-13, we see that hyssop is dipped into blood and used to daub the doorframes with blood, the signal to the angel of death to ‘pass over’ these households during that final night of death before the Exodus from Egypt. Later on, hyssop is used as a cleansing agent for people with skin diseases or houses affected by mould and mildew (see Lev 14:1-7, 33-53), as well as being tied into bunches for use in sprinkling the blood of the sacrificed animals in sacrifices. Later, in John’s Gospel, we see that Jesus’s last drink is offered on a sponge lifted up to him on a hyssop stalk (Jn 19:28-30), thus connecting him with the Passover lamb slain centuries before in Egypt, associating him with the sacrificial and cleansing ceremonies which His death superseded and reminding us that His death is the means by which we can all be purified from our sins.

The Bible makes it clear that it is through the life, the shed blood, the death, and the resurrected, eternal, glorious life of our God and Saviour that we can experience the ultimate cleansing and purification: our sins, though red like scarlet and crimson, can be whiter than snow (Is 1:18), but only through the blood of Jesus Christ (see Heb 9:14, 19-22). David’s prayer to be cleansed with hyssop takes on prophetic significance as we recognise that only God has the power to cleanse us and make us whiter than snow.

The penitential psalms focus on the need for our repentance in approaching a holy God. So often, we like to rush in to the blessings found in following God, but without a true understanding of the enormity of sin, we will likely have a shallow understanding of the riches of God’s blessings and salvation and certainly will not appreciate the cost of Christ’s sacrifice for us. These psalms are full of anguished emotion (talking of sorrow, anguish, groanings, tears, brokenness and pain), indicating the psalmists’ awareness of the gulf separating them from a holy, pure, perfect God.

In the case of Ps 51, we are given the backdrop to David’s anguish, and it is perhaps a surprise to us to realise that it took many months of apparent oblivion to sin and Nathan’s incisive, prophetic story to awaken David’s conscience. How can this king, who had once been so sensitive to God’s promptings, have fallen so far from grace and been so blind? The sobering fact about sin is that it is often insidious, a ‘slow fade’ as Casting Crowns remind us: ‘it’s a slow fade when you give yourself away; it’s a slow fade when black and white turn to grey. Thoughts invade. Choices are made; a price will be paid. People never crumble in a day; it’s a slow fade.’ We are blinded to sin by our own self-righteousness (as the Pharisee in Luke 18:11-12 reminds us) and our capacity for self-deception (Jer 17:9), hence the need to pray for cleansing, restoration and purity. (Ps 51:7, 10-12)

The penitential psalms are not just laments over sin, however. They are rich mines into forgiveness, blessing and hope. Perhaps one reason we are not so aware of the blessings of forgiveness as the psalmists is that we have not felt the guilt and burden of our sin. (Ps 32:5) It’s only when we have stumbled and fallen, bucking God’s control like a rebellious mule or horse (Ps 32:9), that we can taste the full flavour of God’s forgiveness and know how truly blessed we are: ‘What happiness for those whose guilt has been forgiven! What joys when sins are covered over! What relief for those who have confessed their sins and God has cleared their record.’ (Ps 32:1-2, The Living Bible) Or, as Paul put it, ‘where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom 5:20-21) May we be unafraid to repent, secure that God’s grace, unfailing love and great compassion will be enough to welcome us:

‘And if I stand, let me stand on the promise that You will pull me through,

And if I can’t, let me fall on the grace that first brought me to You.’ (Rich Mullins, ‘If I Stand’)

Most of us don’t like distress, don’t like being in pain and would do virtually anything to avoid misery, suffering and anguish. We don’t even like talking about such things, preferring sermons which paint a radiant picture of love, joy and peace so that we do not even for a moment have to contemplate difficult subjects like God’s wrath, the connection between suffering and sin, and our personal responsibility for sin. This is either because we are relentlessly optimistic in our view of Christianity and believe that any mention of distress and anguish is somehow demeaning to the salvation Jesus procured for us or because we would rather pretend the nasty things in life don’t exist, as if by this collective agreement we can actually eradicate sin from the world by an exercise in mind control.

The penitential psalms are not afraid to talk about distress, however. Ps 38 talks about both physical and emotional distress (Ps 38:3, 6-8). Poetic imagery used in the Psalms talks of searing pain like being attacked by arrows (Ps 38:2, see also Deut 32:23, Job 6:4), burning bones (Ps 102:3), overwhelming sorrow (Ps 102:9, Ps 6:6) and deep guilt (Ps 32:5, Ps 38:18). Sin is faced up to, acknowledged and confessed (Ps 32:1-5, Ps 51:3-4, Ps 38:18); David accepts responsibility for having sinned against God and acknowledges God’s view of sin as correct (Ps 51:4). God’s mercy, kindness, love and compassion are fully known, but at the same time, the justice of God’s anger and wisdom of His judgment are also acknowledged. (Ps 51:1-4, Ps 102:13)

Those who feel distress have that distress compounded by a lack of understanding and compassion from others; our sorrow is heightened by a sense of isolation and alienation. David too knew all about that (Ps 38:11-12), feeling like a bird alone on a roof (Ps 102:7), aware that others were slandering him (Ps 38:18-19) and that silence was perhaps his only defence. (Ps 38:13-14) Position and reputation, wealth and fame are no guardians against distress.

Holy distress is not all bad news, however. Paul says that ‘godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret.’ (2 Cor 7:10) Certainly, as we read the penitential psalms, we find our own groanings, longings, sighings and distress articulated before us, but we also find joy and thanksgiving welling up as the psalmist receives forgiveness and an assurance of God’s presence and help. The Lord will rebuild Zion and appear in His glory (Ps 102:16); His name will be declared in Zion and His praise in Jerusalem; a generation yet to come will sing His praises! (Ps 102:18, 21-22) Repentance that leads to salvation is no bad thing; we are truly blessed when we experience the depth of God’s love for us and the joy of restored relationships. (Ps 51:12) If you’re in a place of distress right now, let that distress drive you towards God, for only He can satisfy our souls.

Humans have a remarkable tendency to cope, to adapt to difficulties, to show resourcefulness when things don’t go according to plan and to work out different ways of reaching a preferred goal. This is undoubtedly a useful trait, but it can sometimes lead to a ‘survival’ mentality, which is not at all the same as flourishing or thriving.

In learning to adapt to the present situation, we sometimes lower our expectations of anything ever changing in order to be able to continue to live with the present trial. Chronic, long-term pain may force us to limp… and we forget what it is like to walk tall, free from pain. Failed relationships leave us wary to trust again, so we put up walls to prevent us from being hurt again. We become battered down by life, and the result is a loss of hope, even if we are outwardly coping adequately.

Hope is a fuel which enables us to bear the present in the certainty that this is not forever. It is patient, powerful and enriching, especially when we learn to hope in God. The God of hope is able to fill us with joy and peace so that we can overflow with hope (Rom 15:13), maintaining the perspective that there is room for change ahead of us because of who God is. Paul reminds us that we don’t hope for what we already have. (Rom 8:18) Instead, hoping in God means waiting patiently for His right time. That may well be a lot longer ahead than we would like, but a hope in God enables us to thrive, even in adversity, because we are learning to live by faith and not by sight. (2 Cor 5:7)

For those who are waiting right now, keep hoping. Don’t just cope – hope in God!