No Height No Depth

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” - Romans 8:38-39

It has been said that life is a journey of ups and downs, highs and lows. The author of Ecclesiastes said it this way: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens” (Eccl. 3:1). 

Throughout one’s life, it is common to experience the whole range of seasons and the accompanying emotions that correspond with each. However, we live in a cultural moment where, for the most part, the highs are shared more than the lows, the victories more than the losses, and the harvest more than the fallow seasons. And oftentimes when it comes to our worship of God, we can reflect the world’s culture more than a Biblical one.  

What I mean is that the Bible and its authors are ruthlessly honest about their experiences as humans. They openly share hurt, frustration, grief, depression… and so on. This kind of honesty before the Lord can be hard for us in our modern day. We tend to present ourselves in a good light, cleaning up our outward appearance and pretending to be okay even when we’re not. When we do that, we reflect the culture around us more than we do the culture of the Bible.

So how do we learn to bring ourselves before the Lord more honestly? How can we close the gap and become more sincere worshipers during the moments in our lives that are difficult? I believe Psalm 62 can help us with this. It centers on finding rest in God alone. Verse 8, the centerpoint of this psalm, says, “Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” 

The idea of “pouring out our hearts before the Lord” is crucial for honest worship. The concept contained in the original language is that of “making known the thoughts that are on our hearts,” but the verb “pour” is instructing us to lavishly, or excessively, make those thoughts known to him.  

The hardest moments in life — the ones where we are struggling through grief, wading through doubt, or treading upon fear — are the moments where we often turn inward and go silent. Silence is the ally of darkness. I believe this is why the psalmist calls us to turn outward toward the Refuge rather than inward towards ourselves. When we turn outward and excessively pour out our hearts to the Lord, we bring our hurts, doubts, and fears into the light of Jesus. When our greatest pains and fears are exposed in Jesus’ light, they lose their power and we move toward healing.  

The song “No Height No Depth” is a song of light, written for days of darkness. It’s intended to help you and I express worship to the Lord when we feel like we don’t have the strength to do so. Sometimes simply expressing the fact that we don’t have the answers or we don’t have the energy needed to sing becomes our worship itself. When we pour out our hearts before the Lord, especially in our moments of weakness, we find that His promises are true and his presence is near. In this case, we’re reminded that there is no height nor depth, nor anything else in all of creation that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  

So friends, can I encourage you? The next time your heart wells up with fear or your journey takes you into grief, don’t hold onto it yourself. Instead, begin to pour it out to our Refuge, Jesus, and let him remind you that He will carry you through these days and into greener pastures in due time.