“You could say I lost my faith in science and progress.
You could say I lost my belief in religion.
You could say I lost my sense of direction.
You could say all of this and worse, but…”
“If I ever lose my faith in you
There’d be nothing left for me to do.” —Sting
What do you do when you feel like you’re “deconstructing.” (If you’re just joining us, check out the previous blog for a definition of deconstruction.”
Psalm 11 describes FOUR TRUTHS to remember.
FOUR TRUTHS To Remember When You
Feel Like You’re DECONSTRUCTING:
TRUTH #1: Crisis doesn’t BUILD character or faith,
it REVEALS them.
It’s interesting that David begins Psalm 11 with a statement of faith. Only after stating what he deeply believes about God does he begin to describe what he thinks about his current situation. This is critical, because I’m prone to reverse the order.
I’m so prone to blow my situation totally out of proportion. To talk about how big it is, bad it is or impossible it seems. But David begins with a simple statement about his faith, trust and confidence in God. He shows us faith’s response to fear and insecurity’s whispers and threats.
Check out the first four verses of Psalm 11.
In the Lord I take refuge. [In the Lord I put my trust.] How then can you say to me: “Flee like a bird to your mountain. 2 For look, the wicked bend their bows; they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart. 3 When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
4 The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne… —Psalm 11:1-4 NIV
David doesn’t deny the problem or danger. He knows things are bad, but he also makes a decision to put His trust in God.
Our biggest temptation when the bottom falls out of life is to give in to our insecurities and to cave into our fears. In this current cultural moment when it feels like the whole world is destructing, there’s a strong inclination to simply surrender to the prevailing ideology of the times. To raise our white flag in surrender to our biggest fears and doubts. But our greatest need is a faith that is fierce and even defiant!
Living Like A “Practical Atheist”
Unfortunately, many of us have started to live like “practical atheists.” A practical atheist is someone who intellectually says, “I believe God exists,” but then for all practical purposes lives as if He doesn’t. “Christian atheists” do the same thing. They say they believe Jesus exists, but live as if He doesn’t.
Practical and Christian atheists tend to believe that their effort is better and more reliable than God’s power and faithfulness.
An Important Question To Regularly Ask Ourselves:
Do I actually trust God to do what’s ultimately best for me?
In Psalm 11, David begins by describing his unshakeable conviction that no matter what is deconstructing or being shaken all around Him, His faith is still in God. He still trusts God to do what is right and best for his life.
Deconstruction Always Occurs Around An Authority
One of the reasons faith so easily deconstructs is because deconstruction always occurs around an authority. Don’t miss that… It’s critically important. Deconstruction always occurs around an authority.
If the WORD of GOD is our ultimate authority, then everything — from the bad theology we may have been raised with or the experiences in life that may have hurt or wounded us — everything — all of it — has to submit and surrender to the authority of WHAT GOD SAYS about the matter.
Unfortunately, the authority that the majority of people deconstruct around in 2021 is the AUTHORITY of SELF. But “SELF” isn’t a big enough, strong enough or reliable enough “god” to build your life on. It just isn’t.
I mean, who or what would you rather build your faith on? A fallible, finite, jacked-up human being like yourself or any other person you can think of, or an infallible, almighty, sovereign and all-wise God? Who do you think will be more reliable when a storm strikes?
JOB: An EXAMPLE of TRUST
If anybody had a right to “deconstruct,” it was Job. Think about the personal pain and trauma he endured. But he determined his ultimate authority and allegiance in life at the beginning of his pain, in the middle of his pain and at the end of all his pain.
Here’s how Job responded at the BEGINNING of His loss?
“I was born naked. And I’ll leave here naked. The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
—Job 1:21 NIrV / NLT / ESV
Here’s how he responded in the MIDDLE of his loss and pain?
Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. — Job 13:15 NKJ
The New Living Translation renders that passage like this:
“God might kill me, but I have no other hope.” —Job 13:15 MSG
And, here’s how Job described his ultimate allegiance and authority AFTER his personal encounter with God.
Then Job replied to the Lord: 2 “I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. 3 …I was talking about things I knew nothing about, things far too wonderful for me. 5 I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. 6 I take back everything I said,
and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.
—Job 42:1-2, 3b, 5-6 NLT
Job came to realize something that Henri Nouwen much later discovered when he wrote:
“Getting answers to my questions is not the goal of the spiritual life. Living in the presence of God is the greater call.” —Henri Nouwen
The first truth to remember when you feel like you’re deconstructing is that CRISIS doesn’t build character or faith, it just reveals what is already there.
So, what about it?
What decisions have you made about who or what will be the ultimate authority in your life?
Have you determined and defined that allegiance?
Do you actually trust God to do what’s ultimately best for you?
We’ll share the SECOND TRUTH that is important for us to remember in our next post. In the meantime, take a few minutes to do exactly what David did.
Before you describe what you’re feeling about your current circumstances or situations, define and describe what you really believe about God. Do you actually trust Him to do what is ultimately best for you?
Every word of God proves true. He is a shield to all who come to him for protection.
—Proverbs 30:5 NLT