Psalm 32:10b, “Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.”
Netflix put together a Planet Earth styled show, hosted by Will Smith, called One Strange Rock. Rather than looking at the flora and fauna of God’s creation, this show looks at the large-scale systems that make life possible. (And despite the show’s stereotypical evolutionary perspective, many episodes contain moments of such jaw-dropping wonder that the host or the guests say, “We’re so lucky!” “Luck” …right.)
The overwhelming sense you get is that we are surrounded by good favor and wisdom. Despite all the bad news about “the environment,” the truth is we live on a statistically incomprehensible oddity. We are surrounded by—to put it plainly—love. The way all the different natural processes work together to sustain life is breathtaking.
Sometimes we can see the processes of grace that surround us—like when it’s put in a television special. But often we cannot. We feel ourselves surrounded by sorrows. Heavy weights strapped on us too young, that we cannot shake. Baths of sorrows we have somehow stumbled into and cannot seem to escape. Or sorrows we know will soon be ours, whose oppressive presence in our futures becomes a darkness in our souls today. We are surrounded by sorrows.
To this, the Psalmist says, “No. That is not what surrounds you.” Now, he feels the opposite; he feels the sorrows. That’s why he’s writing this: for himself and for us. He’s writing to retell our story, together, so we don’t lose sight.
What surrounds you and me? Steadfast Love. This is the unique daily-and-forever love that God has promised to His people. It is God’s sure-word to work all things together for our good. Not the general “love” of oxygen or rain, but the personal love shared with each of us in relationship with Jesus. And this means that the burdens of our pasts and the troubles of today and the woes that we all shall know are not ultimately what surrounds us.
The traveler walking through a desert feels the heat, the aridity, the monotony. And they might begin dragging their feet and crying out in boredom, tongue sticking to their mouth. But where are they? They’re breathing air, easily and abundantly. They’re protected from worse effects of the sun. They’re not far from oases. They’re in a sorrowful place, but on a wonderful world.
We sometimes feel the sorrows of life heavy on us. But that’s not what surrounds us. Steadfast love surrounds us. Or, perhaps it’d be better to say that sometimes it feels like our sorrows surround us, but even then it’s steadfast love that surrounds us and our sorrows. Yes, our sorrows are surrounded by steadfast love. “Don’t be anxious, but let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God will guard your heart in Christ Jesus.” “Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God; cast your cares upon Him because He cares for you.” (Phil 4:6-7; 1Pet 5:5) The Bible suggests no illusion about the sorrows of life. But it says, let’s be honest about the steadfast love of God we have in this life too. Sorrows are not the only word, the best word, the truest word, the last word. That belongs to God. And it is a word of love.
And though wickedness inherits sorrows like flies, it is not righteousness that earns love. It is simple faith. The Psalmist doesn’t commend clean-living to us, but commends us to hope in God. The way out of a vision of sorrow isn’t to claw out with self-help tips’n’tricks, but to lean into the everlasting arms: “the eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms.” (Deut 33:27) Faith is what God wants from us. Faith that sorrows aren’t the whole truth, but that He is. He surrounds us with love. He surrounds our sorrows with love.
Sorrows, sorrows, sorrows. New every day. But someday they’ll be old. They’ll be stories we remember. And what’ll be new and real and present every day then will be the smiling face of God. The veil of woes will be peeled back and all will be cleaned and clear—we’ll know as we are known. We’ll see The Light.
He’s there now too, though. That’s what Scripture means to tell us. Someday you’ll see Him. But He’s here now. Yes, I’d like to see Him more now too: “O Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever… Wondrously show me your steadfast love!” (Ps 106:1; Ps 17:7) You, me, and the authors of Scripture. But still, He’s there. Here. With.
So, listen to the Word. See the love of God. It surrounds you. He surrounds you. And before, and under, and through, and after, and beyond all your heartaches is God’s unshakeable, unfailing, steadfast, love.
Photo by Anastasia Taioglou on Unsplash
