Lifted Up

"To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul."

Psalm 25:1, NIV

David is the writer of the above words. In and through them, he expresses the commitment of his inner being -- his emotional and spiritual makeup -- to ascend to God. He is determined to have his soul lifted up to the Father.

But is that possible?
How can his soul, or anyone else's for that matter, be lifted up to God?

Lord, open my eyes that I may see wonderful truths in Your Word!

The Lord reveals, firstly, a strong need for human souls to be lifted up to Him in the following verses:

"My soul is in anguish. How long, O Lord, how long? 

. . . I am worn out from my groaning; 

all night long I flood my bed with weeping 

and drench my couch with tears. 

My eyes grow weak with sorrow; 

they fail because of all my foes." 

-- Psalm 6:3, 6-7, NIV

"The troubles of my heart have multiplied; 

free me from my anguish." 

-- Psalm 25:17, NIV

"My soul is downcast within me . . ." 

-- Psalm 42:6, NIV

This soul weariness is not just typical of David. Throughout Scripture, we find reasons to believe it is a rare moment when the human soul is free from anguish or sorrow.

Abraham experienced it.
Isaac was not spared from it.

And down the line

Joseph
Moses
Eli
Job
Jeremiah
Habakkuk . . .

even Jesus encountered this phenomenon -- "And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground" (Luke 22:44, NIV)

. . . Peter
John
Paul
you
I

We all know what it is like to be weary in our soul.

But why?
Why are we so familiar with soul weariness?

The Father reveals to us that soul weariness will overwhelm our senses when we focus on what our physical eyes see.

"Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise Him,

my Savior and my God."

Psalm 43:5, NIV

In other words, when humans do not put their hope in the Father, the result is a downcast and disturbed soul. When we allow circumstances to halt or dam the flow of our praise to God, it goes without saying the condition of our soul will also plummet to the den of worry and despair.

Indeed, the Father invites us to ask our soul a significant question:

Soul, will you look to circumstances or will you look to God?

Each and every time we set our eyes upon earthly matters, soul weariness dethrones God. On the other hand, a soul is lifted up to God when, like David, we put our hope in God despite unfavorable circumstances.

Praising God in sickness and in health, in plenty and in want, in rain and in shine, in the morning and in the evening is the elevator that lifts our soul up to the Father.

Soli Deo Gloria!