I think this picture pretty much sums up the scene of this Psalm. The Judeans, being carried off to exile, are being made by their captors to sing a song of Zion, of God, while sitting next to the river of Babylon after having lost everything they've ever known. Now, if this was just a story passed on, that would be one thing. However, this is a psalm written to encourage his fellow Israelites to not forget about God and His power. He calls them to recognize their sin and see that they are completely deserving of the situation they're in. The author cries out to God for salvation in the midst of this incredibly horrible time. The author is at a loss for how to sing the LORD's song in a foreign land, much like how we struggle to sing songs of praise in our darkest moments. The author makes the right move, though. He might not be able to sing a song of praise but he will sing a song of mourning, unafraid to completely bear out his hurt and anger toward God during this time.
This should encourage us. God is not afraid to hear all of our pain and our anger against Him. He's not scared of it. It's wrong to think that we must perfect ourselves before coming to God and the worse thing that we could do is be like a small child and refuse to speak to God in our anger. The first step to us being able to find healing is allowing ourselves to feel all of the things we naturally do when something horrible happens to us.We can be angry when bad things happen... What a revelation. You mean we don't have to be perfect in God's presence? We're allowed to feel pain as Christians!? Yes!!!!! And the best part is is that we can take that pain to God, who's not afraid of it and has experienced more of it than we could ever imagine, and He welcomes us. BOOM. I don't know about you but the box I've kept God in just got blown open a little wider.
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