Riding Out the Storm
2 Samuel 12:13-25
13 And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.
14 Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.
15 And Nathan departed unto his house. And the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto David, and it was very sick.
16 David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.
17 And the elders of his house arose, and went to him, to raise him up from the earth: but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them.
18 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead?
19 But when David saw that his servants whispered, David perceived that the child was dead: therefore David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead.
20 Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel, and came into the house of the Lord, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat.
21 Then said his servants unto him, What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread.
22 And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live?
23 But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.
24 And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.
25 And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and he called his name Jedidiah, because of the Lord.
David refused to give up. When suffering the backwash of sin, our tendency is to say, “I am through. I am finished with living. Life isn’t worth it any longer.” But look at what David did: he “comforted his wife Bathsheba.” It’s easy to forget that she was also grieving. Both of them went through a period of grief. They wept. And then they went on living.
David is once more walking with the Lord as he did in days past. One of the most pathetic scenes on earth is a child of God who sits in the corner too long, licking his wounds in self-pity. It takes as much (often more) spiritual strength and purpose to recover and move on as it does to go through a crisis. “I will go on, I will pick up the pieces, I will get back on target, I will go back to work, I will begin to enjoy my friends again, I will carry on as I did before. In fact, by God’s grace, I will be wiser and even more effective than I was before.”
David, in riding out the storm, gives us some beautiful guidelines. He prayed, he faced the consequences realistically, he turned it all over to the Lord as he claimed the scriptural truth concerning death, and then he refused to give up. He moved on, relying on his God for strength.
Riding out the storm is a lonely experience. You will never be more alone emotionally than when you are in the whirlwind of consequences. You will wish others could help you, but they can’t. They will want to be there, they will care, but for the most part, you have to ride out the storm alone.
Riding out the storm, thank God, is also a temporary experience. It may be the most difficult time in your life. You will be enduring your own whirlwind. On the other hand, you may be the innocent bystander caught in the consequential backwash of another’s sin. You’ll feel desperately alone, and it may seem that it will never, ever end. But believe me, the whirlwind is a temporary experience. Your faithful, caring Lord will see you through it.
Riding out a storm? Refuse to give up. Hang on, relying on God for strength.
— Charles R. Swindoll
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