Why, my soul, are you downcast?

Why so disturbed within me?

The writer of the 42nd psalm struggles with a battle that is common, yet rarely talked about.

The feeling of being in deep, dark, anguish and depression.

This pain has brought the writer to a question - Where can I go and meet with God?

The hardest part of dealing with the pains we feel, is the alienation it causes us to have towards God. Written in a time when worship and closeness with God was understood through temple worship, the writer longs for the ability to get back to the house of the Lord.

They say in vs 2-4

I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him? Day and night I have only tears for food, while my enemies continually taunt me, saying, “Where is this God of yours?” My heart is breaking as I remember how It used to be: I walked among the crowds of worshipers, leading a great procession to the house of God, singing for joy and giving thanks amid the sounds of a great celebration!

Something has cut the writer off from being in the house of the Lord.

And because of this, their grief has left them feeling alone, hurt, and desperate. They have no place to turn, and no way to worship the Lord.

But something beautiful happens in this Psalm.

In desperation the writer reflects from where they are, at the beauty of God. And this beauty isn’t found in the temple. It isn’t mixed in the ceremonial sounds of a great celebration. It’s not encamped in the middle of the great crowds of worshipers. It’s seen over a hundred miles away from the temple. It’s founding the world around them.