Does God Forget Us? (The answer might surprise you)

But God will never forget the needy. Psalm 9:18

How long O Lord - will you forget me forever? Psalm 13:1

King David wrote both of these prayers, and they are just about a page apart from each other in your Bible. Sometimes Christians get defensive about how there’s such tension within the Bible and try to explain it away or deny it. But it’s there all right, and it’s out in the open. So just maybe God meant it to be there!

What if both prayers are completely legitimate and healthy? What if the expression of confidence in God’s constant goodness is perfectly true, just like the expression of disappointment and anger at God’s absence? Scripture says that David was a person after God’s own heart - so apparently, these prayers are a picture of what real maturity looks like.

Can you pray both of those prayers? (Perhaps not right at this moment - since you probably connect more with one than the other in any given moment). To put it another way, are you willing to be as honest and vulnerable with God as David was? Notice that both prayers are vulnerable - it’s risky not only to share your anger with God; it’s also risky to proclaim your confidence in God. Which of those prayer do you pray more? What kind of reaction does it cause in you to see them side by side? What do you learn about your relationship with God as you ponder these prayers?