Flinging away our problems

Last spring I entered a contest sponsored by the Georgia Independent Author Association and my book, Moving Beyond: Journeying through Life’s Changes, was the winner in the non-fiction inspirational category! Thank you to the committee members and to everyone who has continued to buy and share it!

Now for today’s topic – Flinging Away our Problems!

Let’s be honest — have you ever fantasized about throwing someone in your life against a wall? Maybe not to hurt them, but to at least knock the wind out of them? Or, as we say in the South, to knock some sense into them?

I will admit that I have had these thoughts. So far, I have not committed any violent acts. When someone is driving me crazy, I try to envision gently placing that person in Jesus’ open arms and praying for them. Or when I’m feeling weighed down with a burden, I quietly pray for God to take it from me.

I recently heard an interpretation of Psalm 55:22 which changed my imagery.

The verse is well known and is one which comforts us during times of struggle and worry. You probably know it:

“Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you;

he will never let the righteous be shaken.” (NIV)

I am a word nerd and that’s one of the reasons I love studying the Bible. In seminary I spent hours in the library with huge books surrounding me, learning the deeper meanings of familiar verses through understanding their Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic roots. Now I can find many of those valuable resources, such as Strong’s Concordance, through the wonder of the internet.

So I learned that the Hebrew word for cast, shalak, actually means to throw. It is used over 100 times in the Old Testament and in a literal sense means to throw, cast, hurl, or fling.

For example, shalak is used to describe soldiers flinging stones from their slingshots (2 Kings 3:25) and heaving the severed head of a corpse over a city wall (2 Samuel 20:21-22). When Moses throws down his staff and it becomes a snake (Exodus 4:3), shalak is used, as well as when he crashes the tablets containing the Ten Commandments down to the ground in anger (Exodus 32:19). Shalak is the verb used when the Israelites sing about Pharaoh’s army and chariots being hurled into the sea (Exodus 15:4) and when the army of Judah throws ten thousand men over a cliff, dashing them to pieces at the bottom (2 Chronicles 25:12).

Do you get the idea that shalak is a fairly forceful word?

Of course, the meaning is figurative here in Psalm 55, which is one of the songs of lament written by David. But the writer of the entry in Strong’s Concordance gives an interesting insight:

“Here שָׁלַךְ moves from battlefield to prayer closet, calling believers to fling every anxiety onto the One who both commands and carries.”

Did you get that part? Just as God led the Israelites on the battlefield, he has the power to take care of our worries. He is in command.

So lately when I pray, I envision throwing my burdens at God. I shove my worries forcefully towards Him. I heave my anger.

I imagine tying a hook onto the collar of whoever is driving me crazy and casting them into Jesus’ arms with a big ole’ fishing rod.

It feels much more satisfying. And when I throw my problems at God, I let go of them. Thankfully, He is strong enough to catch them.