Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!

Psalm 27:9

Oh how there are times in our lives when we feel as if God is hidden from us! We try to pray, only to find a concrete wall as thick as our doubts. We go to church, only to question why others seem able to muster praise when we cannot. We try to read the Scriptures, only to be pierced by our endless shortcomings. Whatever the cause may be, take heart, struggling Christian! You are not alone in this agony. David felt this way too, and you can make his prayer your own today.

First, reach out to God: O Lord, please do not hide your face from me! Don’t cast me away! Don’t forsake me! This prayer is based in faith. You long for God; you are weary of life without His joy, presence, and peace. Take heart! If you find yourself praying this, you are a true believer—those who know Christ desire to be with Him, experience His presence, and seek His face (Ps 27:4). Though our fallen bodies and minds often make us feel otherwise, we are secure in Christ.

Second, remember His character: O you who have been my help! Notice this: you can only pray the first prayer above because this second phrase is true. God has been your help. Look back on your life. What has He delivered you from? What prayers of desperation has He answered? What gracious provision have you seen from His hand? Take heart! “Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him” (Mt. 6:8). Surely He sees you now—and He knows why He is allowing you to experience these feelings of forsakenness. 

Finally, rest in His salvation: O God of my salvation! Whenever you feel forsaken by God, look to Christ. On the cross Christ was forsaken so you would never have to be. If the Father sent His Son as the most precious, costly gift to secure your salvation, then He will not turn His face from you now. Though there are times when your circumstances are grim, or your emotions speak lies, the bloody cross and the empty grave are the two greatest proofs of God’s love for you. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rm 8:1). If God gave His best to save you at your worst, there’ll never be a day He goes back on His word.

God will never forsake those whom He has chosen in Christ. Though you may feel forsaken, He is indeed very near. Take the gospel by faith today; grip these truths with all your spiritual might. And when the tempest of our emotions or the shipwreck of our circumstances attempt to pry our weary hands away from Christ—Oh believer!—Christ’s hands hold you tighter still.