God, my Exceeding Joy

by Violet Tse

“Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy: yea, upon the harp will I praise thee, O God my God�.  Psalm 43:4

Have you ever felt misunderstood, alone, harassed by others, even “cast off� by God Himself?  I certainly have, more times than I care to admit.  My life is so rich compared to a majority of my brothers and sisters in the world.  Why should I ever complain about anything?  And yet, I do.

David faced a much more difficult situation in this psalm than I have ever known, as he was in exile, pursued by Saul.  What was his response?  First, he expressed his grief and feelings of injustice.  Then he asked some hard questions:  “Why dost thou cast me off? Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?�  But to whom does he pour out his complaints?  To his friends or family? No.  He goes straight to God with his pain and doubt.  “Then will I go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy.�  When his focus turned to God, all else paled by comparison and even seemed irrelevant.  He seemed to say, “Why was I ever so troubled by circumstances or people, when I have such a great God – my exceeding joy?�  The margin reads “the gladness of my joy,� i.e. the very soul and heart of my joy.  David immediately broke forth into praise to this God of gods, with special emphasis on the personal, “my God.�

The psalm ends with David talking to himself about this wonderful God.  Things came back into perspective again as he realized these trials were only temporary (II Corinthians 4:17, 18).  He would spend eternity praising Him for Who He is and reveling in the assurance that He is “my God.�  Let’s join him right now and “go unto the altar of God, unto God my exceeding joy.�

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