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When I was growing up it was always the same - summers were far too short and school days way too long! I can recall those days well. Whether daydreaming in Mrs. DeCoco’s grade 4 class at Colborne St Public or goofing off  in Mr. Fishers grade 8 class at Hill Street Senior Public, I’d be  wishing May and June would speed up so summer vacation would come! My cry would often be, “How long”? Now, good grief! I don’t even know which day is which half the time, let alone able to  ponder how long the months may be. Certainly age adds a very different dynamic to ones thinking doesn’t it?

But there is another side this lamenting of time. The struggle of time is often seen in the context of our suffering. When we suffer the time before us closes us in. It seems to stretch on with no end causing us to cry out “How long O Lord?” This is exactly the way the psalmist expresses his own anguish, recorded for us in Psalm 13:1-2. There we read, "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?” While there is no specific information as the situation in which the writer finds himself, we are told that David is the author. And if David be the one to pen this psalm then we know of a number of situations he may be referring to. Times of physical pain and emotional trauma. And this is not a one off, as they say. A quick count reveals about 16 times this phrase “how long?” being used in the psalms.

Whats the point? We have been living under the dark cloud of Covid since the early part of the year. There seems, though things have improved, to be no end in sight, which gives rise to the lament as we have previously stated, “how long O Lord?”.  We have been affected in many ways, some more than others. But all have found great frustration in trying to navigate these troubled waters.

So is that it? Do we just resign ourselves to many more months of uncertainty, giving in to the dark cloud of fear? Absoluty not! As children of the King “we are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed’ (2 Corinthians 4:8-9). In fact, it is times like these that we find our greatest strength and joy. Looking back to Psalm 13 we discover this being the case for David. He concludes this brief portion with, “But I will trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me.”

Oh, dear ones, please do not cave in to the pressures around you. Do not allow Satan to  cloud your mind and cause you to continually cry out in despair. Your God is good - all the time. And he is doing everything for his glory and your joy! May the cries of our hearts be ones of joy in the midst of sorrow, trust in the face of fear and praise in the time of drought.