Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Psalms 25:16
Sometimes it seems to us that God is not facing us. We see his back but not his face. And there is nothing lonelier than when even God seems absent. So we plead with God to turn his face toward us. This is a strong metaphor for God’s presence and favour to be experi- enced tangibly. There is always plenty of grace available when we are conscious of God’s presence. How does God’s grace fill the deep void of the lonely and afflicted soul? Why is grace from outside of ourselves the key to the problem we feel inside of ourselves?