Latest / Reformed Thinking / The Power of a Sigh (Psalm 12:5) | Charles Spurgeon

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The Power of a Sigh (Psalm 12:5) | Charles Spurgeon · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to Reformed Thinking. We're diving deep again into
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ideas that really shape how we understand our faith and, well,
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just life itself. Glad to be here.
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So think about this for a moment.
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Those times when everything feels overwhelming, maybe
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circumstances just feel completely out of your hands and
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words. They just fail you, your deepest
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sorrows. They feel too heavy, too quiet,
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even to, you know, find a voice. Yeah, we've all been there, I
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think. What if, right in those most
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silent moments when you feel completely helpless, what if you
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were actually communicating, maybe even communicating most
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directly with God? That's quite a thought, isn't
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it? That helplessness could actually
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be effective communication. It really turns our usual ideas
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about prayer maybe on their head.
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Absolutely. And that's what we do here on
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The Deep Dive. We take these compelling
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sources, these ideas, and we try to pull out the most significant
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insights, helping you get a real handle on important concepts
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quickly and hopefully thoroughly.
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And today, yeah, we're digging into some truths from a maybe
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unexpected place for some listeners.
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A classic sermon, but one that still speaks so clearly today,
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well over 100 years later. We are doing a deep dive into
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the power of a sigh. It's by the well, the very well
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known 19th century preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
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Spurgeon often called the Prince of Preachers.
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His influence, especially in evangelical circles, was just
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immense. And this sermon, he gave it
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April 22nd, 1886. So yeah, quite a while ago now
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at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London.
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And it all centers on just one verse.
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A single verse from the Psalms. But wow, it is packed.
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There really is Psalm 12 verse 5.
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That's the one, right? It says for the oppression of
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the poor, for the sighing of the needy.
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Now will I arise, saith the Lord.
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I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
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There's a lot in there, oppression, poverty, neediness,
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sighing, and then this powerful response from God.
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Now will I arise? Exactly.
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And Spurgeon just unpacks it beautifully.
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So that's our plan today. Yeah, we'll.
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Breakdown Spurgeon's message First, look at how he describes
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the tough situations God's people often find themselves in.
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It's quite realistic. Then, and this is the core bit,
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how their quietest expressions of grief, those sighs, can
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actually move God to act. And finally, the incredible ways
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God brings deliverance, how He provides comfort, especially
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when His people feel they can't do anything themselves.
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So get ready for, I think, some unexpected comfort, maybe some
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surprising ways to think about suffering.
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Because this deep dive really shows how even our quietest,
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most helpless moments can, in a way, speak loudest to God.
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They can draw out His sovereign, compassionate help.
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Let's dive in. OK, let's start by setting the
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stage. Thinking about the kind of
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circumstances Spurgeon was talking about, he looks back at
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David's time, the author of Psalm 12.
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Right, Spurgeon says. David lived in very evil times,
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and you can hear it in David's own words in that song.
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Things like help Lord for the godly man, Ceaseth for the
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faithful fail from among the children of men.
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That really paints a picture, doesn't it?
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A sense of deep spiritual decline?
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Maybe societal decay too, like truth and faithfulness are just
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vanishing. It does.
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And what's immediately helpful, I think, especially from our
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reform standpoint, is the sense of historical connection
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Spurgeon brings right away. So.
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Well, he says. Look, bad as the times may be in
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which we live, there have been bad times before these.
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It's a simple point, but it lands.
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Yeah, it means we're not the first.
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We aren't alone in facing times where you know the love of many
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is waxing cold or we're finding truth feels like searching for a
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needle in a haystack. Exactly.
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And that historical view, it sort of normalizes suffering for
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believers. It suggests that difficulty,
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opposition, these aren't exceptions.
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They're actually recurring patterns for God's people
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throughout history, almost part of God's providential plan, not
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a sign that something's uniquely wrong with our time.
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That is helpful because it can feel so isolating when you're in
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the thick of it. Can it like your struggles are
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brand new, worse than ever before?
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But knowing that generations before us weathered storms, as
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Spurgeon puts it, and found their desired haven, that gives
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real assurance. It points to God's faithfulness
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across the ages. Right.
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If he sustained them through their dark times, then the same
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God who doesn't change, who is sovereign in his care, well,
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he's with us too. It highlights God's consistency,
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His providential hand guiding things even when truth seems
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absent or godliness seems rare. So that foundation, God's
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faithfulness, the reality of trials, that really sets up
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Spurgeon's whole message from this verse.
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It does. He basically structures his
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sermon around 3 main points from Psalm 12.5 and leave will be our
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guideposts for this deep dive. OK, what are they first?
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God's people might find themselves in a really sad
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situation, just plain difficult circumstances.
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Second, even then, God's people have a friend close by, a friend
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who hears even their size, those quiet expressions.
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A friend who hears size. And 3rd, this friend will come
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to their aid. When he acts, he'll bring about
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a real change deliverance. Right, sad situation.
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The listening friend and active help.
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Got it. Let's dig into that first one.
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God's people in a very sad situation.
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Where does Spurgeon start with that?
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He starts by looking closely at the words poor and needy in the
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Psalm. He says they're not quite the
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same thing. There's a distinction.
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Oh, how does he see them differently?
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Well, poor, he explains. It's about lacking material
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wealth. Pretty straightforward.
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Struggling to make ends meet for yourself, maybe difficult
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enough, sure, but needy, Spurgeon says.
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As another layer, it's like poverty plus the burden of
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dependence or extra responsibilities.
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His example is having many mouths to feed.
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Oh OK, so you might manage on scraps for yourself, but if
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you've got kids or others relying on you, your need is
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much greater, much heavier. That makes sense.
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Exactly. It multiplies the difficulty.
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And right here, Spurgeon challenges some maybe deeply
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held assumptions, even for believers.
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What kind of assumptions? He just says straight out, it
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should not surprise any of us if we find ourselves to be poor and
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needy. He's saying don't automatically
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think being poor or needy means God has abandoned you or is
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displeased with you. Which goes against a lot of
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thinking, maybe especially today, where wealth is sometimes
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seen as a sign of God's blessing.
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Right, Spurgeon argues almost the opposite.
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He says God often chooses his very best and brightest servants
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from among the poor. It's countercultural, but he
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backs it up. How does he back that up
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biblically I. Assume, Oh yes, he points out
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First. The gospel is preached to the
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poor, that's who. Christ often ministered to those
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on the margins. Good point.
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He also reminds us of Jesus's own caution about how hard it is
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for the rich to enter the Kingdom, suggesting wealth can
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actually be a spiritual hindrance, not always a
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blessing. It can create self-reliance
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maybe. Perhaps.
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And then he brings in Paul from first Corinthians 1.
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You know God choosing the foolish things to confound the
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wise, the weak things to confound the things which are
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mighty. God turning worldly values
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upside down. Precisely.
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And then there's James the Apostle.
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James asking, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world,
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rich in faith, and heirs of the Kingdom?
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So the biblical case is strong material poverty doesn't equal
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spiritual poverty. In fact, it might be the
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opposite sometimes. That's Persian's argument.
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He's saying, based on Scripture and just observation, that a
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lack of earthly goods can actually be God's chosen way to
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cultivate deeper spiritual blessings like faith,
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dependence, humility. It speaks to God's sovereign
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wisdom in choosing His people and His methods.
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It's almost like that richness and faith is born out of
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necessity, out of having less of the world to.
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Rely on Yeah, Spurgeon puts it quite poetically.
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He says God's electing affection seems to be looking far off her
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into the cottage than into the palace.
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That gives a lot of comfort, doesn't it?
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And a totally different lens for viewing our circumstances.
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Being poor and needy isn't necessarily a sign you're
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outside God's favor. For Spurgeon, it might mean
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you're exactly in the place where God often does his deepest
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spiritual work. It redefines what real success,
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real blessedness looks like. It's not about earthly wealth,
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but spiritual richness and relationship with God.
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OK, so poverty and neediness are one part of this sad situation.
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What else does Spurgeon highlight?
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Well, he talks about oppression and slander, the kind of attacks
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that righteous people often face, and he uses David's life
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again as the prime example. David certainly faced his share
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of that. Constantly from his youth,
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Spurgeon notes. Remember when Samuel came to
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anoint a king from Jesse's sons, David wasn't even called in from
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the fields. He was overlooked, maybe
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despised, by his own family. Right, left with the sheep and
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his older brother. Eliab really gave him a hard
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time before the Goliath fight, didn't he?
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Accused him of pride. Yes, dismissed him as arrogant.
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And then, of course, after the victory over Goliath, things got
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much worse with King Saul. The song Saul hath slain his
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thousands, and David his 10 thousands.
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That really sets Saul off. It did.
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That praise turned Saul's heart to jealousy, and then began
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years of Saul hunting David, trying to kill him, even though
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David had done nothing wrong, had been loyal.
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It's a clear picture of how doing right can sometimes
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provoke malice from others. It's a hard truth.
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It is, and Spurgeon points out, that God's servants can get a
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very bad name sometimes precisely because of their
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righteousness. He brings up Joseph in Egypt.
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Joseph thrown in prison. Right.
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Not for any crime, but specifically, Spurgeon says, for
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his chastity and purity in resisting Potiphar's wife.
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So unfair treatment is part of the potential sad situation.
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Yes, but here's the key. From a Reformed view, Spurgeon
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emphasizes that even though the treatment is unrighteous and
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unjust from the human side, God in his sovereignty consistently
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overrules it for good. How does he describe that?
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He uses an analogy. He likens it to the necessary
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breaking end of a rough cult that's destined for something
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great. It's discipline, training, even
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quotes lamentations. It is good for a man that he
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bare the yoke in his youth. So these trials, this
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opposition, they actually serve a purpose in God's plan to
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cultivate humility, dependence, strength, like refining fire.
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Exactly. Preparing God's chosen people
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for what He has for them later. It's about spiritual formation
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through hardship under God's sovereign hand that gives.
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Suffering a different meaning, it's not pointless.
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No, And, Spurgeon advises his listeners, don't be surprised if
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your path to heaven is rough. He says.
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We should maybe wonder more if we hit a smooth patch, huh?
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That's one way to look at it. He even warns against getting
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too comfortable with praise. He says Palm Sunday is not far
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off Good Friday. Meaning the crowds that cheer
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you today might turn on you tomorrow, like they did with
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Jesus. Precisely.
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Don't put too much stock in human approval.
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It's fickle. Our real standing, our real
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reward comes from God alone. It keeps us grounded in reality
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and a sober understanding of the Christian life.
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OK, so we have poverty, neediness, oppression, slander.
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What else contributes to this sad situation?
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There's the pain of being silenced when things get so bad
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you can't even speak up for yourself, Spurgeon says.
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Sometimes oppression is so severe that people feel scarcely
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able to speak for themselves at all.
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They feel shut up and silenced. Why silenced?
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Fear of making things worse, maybe.
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Fear of retaliation. They might not dare voice their
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claims for justice or even confide in friends because it
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could lead to further mischief. So they have to bear it alone in
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silence. That sounds incredibly
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isolating, a solitary anguish. It is.
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And in those moments, Spurgeon says, when words are gone, when
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your tongue is tied, the only language left is the sigh.
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The sigh, he calls it, that expressive token of an inward,
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unutterable grief. It's communication beyond words,
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a raw, involuntary outpouring when there's just nothing left
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to say. That's very descriptive.
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Does he give an example? Yes, a powerful one, Hannah in
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the Old Testament. Remember her story Baron.
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Provoked by her rival Benina, she goes to the temple in deep
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distress. And she's praying.
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But. But only her lips moved, but her
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voice was not heard. She was praying silently,
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pouring out her soul. And Eli the priest sees her and
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completely misunderstands he. Thought she was drunk.
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Exactly. It shows how deep grief, silent
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grief, can be misconstrued even by religious leaders.
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But her silent suffering expressed only in moving lips
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and presumably sighs from her heart, that was her most
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desperate prayer, misunderstood by man but heard by God.
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Wow, that's a powerful illustration of silent prayer
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being heard. Definitely.
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And there's one more aspect to this sad situation Spurgeon
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mentions, which ties back to the verse itself being despised and
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puffed at. Puffed at what exactly does that
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mean? It's an odd phrase.
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It is. Spurgeon breaks it down.
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He says puffeth. Adam means expressing contempt,
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scorn, disdain, often not even with words but with sounds or
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gestures. Like what?
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Like oh, him sha or her. Well, she Pooh.
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Maybe a shrug of the shoulders. It's dismissal belittling.
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So it's not a direct accusation, but more of a vague, dismissive
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contempt. Right, Spurgeon says.
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It's vaguely casting out someone's name is evil, which he
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notes is always worse than stating it directly because it's
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hard to refute. There's nothing solid to grab
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onto. It's an insidious kind of
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attack, undermining someone without making a clear charge.
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Yeah, Spurgeon calls it dastardly.
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Cowardly, really. If you have a real issue, state
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it plainly. Don't just puff with the stain,
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he reminds us. David himself was puffed at by
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his own brother Eliab, before the Goliath fight dismissed as
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proud and naughty. Even though he was the one God
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had chosen. Right.
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And Spurgeon's advice here is just remarkable.
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It shows real mental strength rooted in God's sovereignty.
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What does he advise? He tells his listeners,
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basically, don't worry about it. He says, never mind, young man,
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never mind what they say. They say and they say and they
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say. And when they've said it thrice,
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let them say it again as often as they please.
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Just. Ignore it, keep going.
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Pretty much keep going faithfully on the path God is
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set for you. Trust God, serve Him regardless
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of what they say, because your value, your purpose isn't based
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on shifting human opinions. It's based on God's decree, His
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plan for your life. Focus on your audience of one
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that. Builds real resilience, doesn't
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it? Not letting those dastardly
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attacks derail you. Absolutely.
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So that's the picture Spurgeon paints of the sad situation.
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Poverty need, oppression, being silenced, being despised.
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It's stark human vulnerability laid bare.
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But the amazing thing, as you said, is how Spurgeon claims
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this very despair, this inability to even speak, becomes
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the most powerful kind of prayer.
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Exactly. Which brings us perfectly to the
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second main point, where the real comfort starts to flood in.
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God's people have a friend at hand, a friend who hears even
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their size. And what a friend he is.
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Spurgeon actually shares a personal story here, doesn't he?
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From his wife. Yes, it's quite touching.
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Apparently his wife had chosen Psalm 12.5 for an Almanac they
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published. Maybe for daily readings.
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And later a woman, a dear child of God, wrote to Spurgeon.
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What did she say? She said she found immense
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comfort in that verse because she was going through deep
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sorrow and found herself sighing often, and she offered this
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beautiful illustration of what the verse meant to her.
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An illustration about the sigh. Yes, involving a mother and her
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child is so relatable, she said. If her little child makes a
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petulant cry, you know, maybe demanding whiny, and she might
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not jump up immediately. She knows it might be selfish,
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not real distress. OK, makes sense.
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But she said if the child let's out, just a weak and very sad
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and a little sigh, just a soft involuntary sound of real hurt
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or sadness. Then what?
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Then the mother cannot stand that, but goes to it at once.
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The sigh, the woman wrote, fetches the mother out of bed.
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It has this great effect because it signals genuine helpless
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distress. Wow, that's the core insight.
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The sigh is involuntary, Terry. It's sign of weakness, deep
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sorrow. Not a demand, not a complaint,
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but just this raw expression of helplessness.
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And that's what moves the mother's heart.
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It's a response to true pain, not manipulation.
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So how does Spurgeon apply this to God?
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Well, the parallel is direct, and especially for us, thinking
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in Reformed terms about God's intimate care for his chosen
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people, it's quite illuminating. It shows how God is moved by
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that involuntary, quiet, helpless grief from His
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children, maybe even more than by loud, demanding, well
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articulated prayers. So when sorrows are so bitter
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that the sufferers can scarcely pray, When even their desires
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seem to fade, and only sighs are left.
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Spurgeon says God cannot be still, he must get up.
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God hears the grief when the grief has no voice.
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He hears the sorrow when the sorrow cannot find a tongue.
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It speaks volumes about God's deep, fatherly compassion for
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his own. It's quite something, isn't it,
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that the Almighty God, the Infinite One who created the
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heavens, that He is all there, completely attentive, when one
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of his children simply sighs? Spurgeon emphasizes this.
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He says God's heart is touched, his bowels are moved.
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His whole being is full of an infinite compassion.
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It's not some detached observation.
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It's an active, empathetic response from the sovereign
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Creator himself. A response driven by love.
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Yes, Spurgeon speaks of God's overwhelming love that compels
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him, moves him to speed. To their relief, he even
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contrasts this with the arrogant words of the wicked mentioned
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just before this verse. Those who say our tongues are
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our own, Who is Lord over us? So God might just ignore that
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proud boasting. But the sad sigh of his children
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that gets his immediate attention?
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It shows a unique sensitivity God has for his own people,
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rooted in His covenant faithfulness.
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This love, this responsiveness that leads directly to that
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powerful phrase in the verse. Now will I arise?
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Saith the Lord. What does Spurgeon make of that
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phrase? Now will I arise?
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He says it signifies God becoming fully roused, like
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someone getting up from rest, maybe rolling up his sleeve to
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make bear his arm, getting ready for serious work, setting
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himself with full intent to do something requiring all his
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skill and might. It's such an active image, God
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taking decisive action. Yes, he contrasts with passages
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like Isaiah 45, which says God sometimes hidest thyself.
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Spurgeon suggests that while God often works behind the scenes,
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the deep, silent anguish of his people causes him to reveal his
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power more openly. And when God arises.
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Spurgeon says he shakes terribly The earth.
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Nothing stands before him when he once arises.
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It's irresistible omnipotence on display and the trigger the
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sighing of His needy people. That humble sound moves the
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Almighty to unleash His full power.
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That's a profound thought, our weakest expression eliciting
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God's strongest response. It really is, and it connects to
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God's sovereign plan. His plan includes our suffering,
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yes, but also His certain powerful intervention in
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response to our humble dependence, showing His active
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rule over everything. The Spurgeon offer a big
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biblical example of this God arising because of size.
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Oh, the classic example, Israel and Egypt.
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Remember, the text says the children of Israel sighed by
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reason of the bondage. They groaned under Pharaoh's
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oppression. Their cry came up to God.
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Exactly. And God heard their groaning.
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And God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and
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with Jacob. His action wasn't random, It was
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a direct response to their suffering, their size, grounded
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in His covenant promises. The sign came first, then the
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arising. Precisely.
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Spurgeon even brings in Handel's oratorio, Israel in Egypt.
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He mentions how the music itself seems to capture that sighing
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sound. Really.
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Yeah, he says. The sigh is the beginning, the
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meaning of it all. It's the catalyst.
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It leads to God's mighty acts, the plagues, the Red Sea
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parting, and that final triumphant shout the horse and
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his rider has he thrown into the sea.
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It vividly connects the people suffering, expressed in size, to
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God's massive redemptive intervention in history.
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It does. It underscores that active
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relationship between God and his covenant people.
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And Spurgeon drives home the point that this isn't just
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ancient history. How so?
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He declares the same God lives for you as he lived for Jacob's
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seed. Your sorrow today, your sigh,
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can still touch that heart of God, and He will deliver you as
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He delivered them. So it's the same consistent,
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faithful, compassionate God. His providential care is just as
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real for us now. That's the assurance which leads
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us straight into the Third Point.
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What happens when God does arise When his people fetch their
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friend with their size? The verse says I will set him in
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safety from him that puffeth at him.
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So it's about deliverance safety.
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Active, decisive deliverance and vindication.
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And again, Spurgeon uses David's life, particularly his
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relationship with Saul, as a perfect illustration.
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How David handled Saul's persecution.
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Yes. Remember David had clear chances
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to kill Saul in The Cave at Ingetti.
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He just cut off a piece of Saul's robe.
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Later in Saul's camp, he took the spear and water jug but
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wouldn't let Ebashai strike Saul down.
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He refused to take vengeance himself.
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Remarkable restraint. Spurgeon calls it a grand proof
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of the power of faith, faith to not touch the one hunting you.
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And he draws the principle for us.
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If you're a child of God, you'll say no, vengeance isn't mine.
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It's not my job to repay. Instead, maybe even show
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kindness like Jesus taught. Love your enemies.
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Exactly. And Spurgeon says when God's
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child refuses to lift a hand to save themselves, trusting
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entirely in God's timing and justice, that's when God, God
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says, OK, now I will do it. I will act.
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He takes up their cause. And for David, God did act.
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Saul eventually fell in battle against the Philistines, right?
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Saul's pursuit ended, and David was finally anointed king over
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all Israel. He was set in safety from Saul,
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the one who had puffed at him with contempt for so long.
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It shows God's sovereign power to vindicate his faithful
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servants in his own way, in his own time, God defends his own.
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So how does this deliverance, this safety, actually look?
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Does Spurgeon describe the methods God uses?
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Yes, and he highlights that God's methods vary, showing the
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diversity of his providential care.
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Sometimes it's very direct, very physical.
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Like what? He might literally lift his
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people out of their troubles, move them somewhere else, maybe
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even put them in positions of authority over those who
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previously oppressed them. A complete reversal of
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circumstances. Like Israel being brought out of
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Egypt or Joseph becoming second in command.
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Exactly. A clear, visible intervention
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that changes everything externally.
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And that's not the only way, is it?
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No Other times, Spurgeon says. God allows the adversaries to
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puff. The opposition continues, but he
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gives his people so much place and so much faith that they rise
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above it internally. So the circumstances don't
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change, but the person does. Right, he says.
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All the bitterness is gone, all the injuries removed.
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Not necessarily the external cause, but its effect on the
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soul. The trial is transformed into
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something that actually leads to more prayer and to a closer walk
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with God. It becomes a means of spiritual
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growth even amidst the difficulty.
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Peace in the storm? Precisely.
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It's a shift from external change to internal
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strengthening, and Spurgeon uses another illustration here from
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John Bunyan. Pilgrim's Progress.
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Yes, he refers to Giant Pope, who in Bunyan's time represented
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the waning power of persecution. The giant is still there, but he
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can only sit in his cave's mouth, grinning at pilgrims,
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unable to actually harm them anymore.
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So the threat might still exist, but God makes it ineffective,
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renders the puffing harmless. Exactly because God has equipped
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His people with spiritual resilience.
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So whether God removes the trial or strengthens His people to
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endure it peacefully, the result is safety.
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Both are expressions of His sovereign goodness and care.
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And does this safety apply to spiritual battles too, not just
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human opposition? Oh, definitely.
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Spurgeon makes that clear. He says even Satan, the arch
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enemy, can be the one who puffs his temptations.
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His accusations can feel like dismissive puffs if God protects
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his people. How does God protect them?
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By covering them with armor of proof, Spurgeon says, making it
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so that even the devil's temptations cannot bring a
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poisoned arrow into your soul. It's about God's protective hand
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over his elect. And our confidence comes from
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Christ. Absolutely.
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Spurgeon points to Jesus, our Master, who met him Satan in the
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wilderness and fought him in a threefold duel and ultimately
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triumphed over him completely. Leaving marks of his sword on
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him, as Spurgeon puts it. Yes, and because Christ won,
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even the weakest believer covered by Christ's victory can
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say with confidence, quoting Micah, Rejoice not against me, O
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mine enemy. When I fall, I shall arise.
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Because God's help brought by our size connects us to His
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omnipotence. An omnipotence that is
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infinitely more than a match for all the powers of darkness.
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That's a core Reformed understanding, isn't it?
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Our victory isn't ours. It's Christ's victory applied to
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us. So the focus has been very much
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on God's people, his children, the elect, his specific care for
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them when they sigh. Yes, that's the main thrust
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drawn from the context of the Psalm.
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But Spurgeon doesn't stop there, does he?
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He seems to brought him the invitation.
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He does with a really generous heart.
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Towards the end. He extends the comfort of this
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passage even to those who might feel they are not the children
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of God but are still in trouble. What does he tell them?
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He reassures them that God is very pitiful and full of
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compassion, even towards, as he puts it, natural and ungodly men
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when they are in trouble. God's general mercy is wide.
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It's a demonstration of God's common grace, his general
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benevolence to all creation. I think so.
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Spurgeon uses the example of God hearing the young Ravens when
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they cry. Ravens can't pray spiritual
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prayers, obviously. It shows God's willingness to
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hear any cry rising from sorrow, regardless of the source or it's
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spiritual sophistication. Like the Psalm says, like as a
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father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear
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him. But Spurgeon suggests God's pity
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extends in a general way, even beyond those who fear him.
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Yes, there's an open door for anyone in distress to turn
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towards him. His fundamental nature is
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compassionate. And this leads him to make a
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direct appeal, a call to pray. It does.
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He shares another story, quite moving, about a man who recently
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joined his church. This man had been gravely ill,
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desperately trying different medicines.
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And then it hit him. He'd never prayed to God to make
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me. Well, he'd never asked God for
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help. So he did.
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He prayed, his first simple prayer, perhaps to a God he
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barely knew, just asking for healing.
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And God answered. Yes, God answered that prayer,
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and that initial answer led the man to pray more and eventually,
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Spurgeon says, to trust Jesus Christ for the salvation of his
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soul. So God used that basic human
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need, that cry for help and sickness as a starting point to
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draw him closer. Exactly.
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It shows how God can meet people right where they are in their
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physical or emotional distress and use that as an entry point
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for a deeper relationship. So the encouragement for anyone
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listening who feels distant from God is.
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Is simple, do try him and trust him for yourselves.
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That's Spurgeon's plea. He assures them he will listen
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to your sighs and your cries and your tears only turn to him with
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full purpose of heart and he will not cast you away.
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It's a message of hope that even the smallest, most hesitant
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turning towards God can be met with his compassion.
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A very hopeful and open invitation.
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OK, so as we sort of wrap up this deep dive into Spurgeon's
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The Power of a Sigh, what are the main takeaways we've seen
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how he helps us understand this silent but really impactful
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language of the sigh? Yeah, that when words fail us,
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when troubles feel overwhelming, those quiet, maybe even
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involuntary expressions of grief can genuinely reach God's heart.
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They can stir Him in his sovereignty and compassion to
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act powerfully. And there's comfort in knowing
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our trials aren't unique. They fit into a pattern we see
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throughout history for God's people part of his providential
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working. Right, and his deliverance isn't
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1 size fits all. It might be removing the problem
28:00
altogether, or it might be giving us that inner peace and
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strength to endure it faithfully, knowing His hand is
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guiding everything. So the big idea is this picture
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of God, who is incredibly near, incredibly attentive, actively
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responding to the deepest unspoken grief of his people,
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offering help, offering strength.
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I'm crucially extending an invitation to anyone in
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distress, whether they feel close to God or far off, to turn
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to Him because he is fundamentally a God of
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compassion who hears. So here's a final thought to
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maybe ponder. In our world today, we put so
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much emphasis on speaking up, articulating our needs, making
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our case, you know? Very true.
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Communication is key, we're told.
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So what does it really mean that the Almighty God, according to
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Spurgeon in the Psalm, seems to hear and respond most clearly,
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most powerfully to what cannot be spoken to, that silent, raw
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expression of sorrow, that sigh? It's a challenging thought,
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perhaps genuine connection, genuine helps, doesn't always
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start with our words, but maybe in that place of stillness, that
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vulnerable moment when all we have left is a sigh directed
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towards him. Something to think about.
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Well, thank you for joining us for this deep dive into the
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power of a sigh here on Reformed Thinking.
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We hope it's giving you some fresh insight and perhaps some
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real comfort today.