Keep On Singing

Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42:5 (NIV)

One of the biggest hang-ups we have in trusting God is the same one the psalmist had in the first two lines of Psalm 42:5—Why? Why does God let bad things happen to good people? Why is this happening at all? Why isn’t God changing things?

It’s a legitimate question. The psalmist’s life was so messed up, he was straight up depressed, and all his friends thought he had every right to be (Psalm 42:3,6). But because he knew God, he knew what to do with the question. There is hope in God, so He is worthy of our praise even in the whys. In fact, praising God is the very thing that will help you face the whys.

In 2 Chronicles 20:21-23, God’s people were facing a big, scary army. King Jehoshaphat put the singers in front to lead them into battle—not the jocks, not the guys who hopped out of bed to do pushups and chug protein shakes every morning—the singers, to sing songs of praise to God. And guess what happened. They won the battle! Then, over in the New Testament, we read a story about Paul and Silas, who had been beaten and tossed in jail. Around midnight, they started singing. It was for sure a hard-fought, heartfelt, been-through-hell hallelujah—and what happened? The chains that had kept them locked up just fell off (Acts 16:25-34).

We sing what we know. And when the whys have us feeling unsure about what we really know, we keep on singing anyway, and God makes it real to us. Singing praises to God helps us remember and know who He is in our situation. It gives us courage to keep walking with Him and trusting in His plans.

• How has praise and worship impacted you in difficult times? How do we prepare for this in the lighter moments of life?
• The lyrics in the first verse of “Hard Fought Hallelujah” are, “I don't always feel it, but that's when I need it the most. So, I'ma keep on singing 'til my soul catches up with my song.” What’s a situation you’re in right now where you can apply that truth?
• Prayerfully listen to “Hard Fought Hallelujah,” acknowledging any whys you have about the difficulties God has allowed you to face. Thank Him for who He is, even in the whys.