I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. 2When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands, and I would not be comforted. 3I remembered you, God, and I groaned; I meditated, and my spirit grew faint. 4You kept my eyes from closing; I was too troubled to speak. 5I thought about the former days, the years of long ago; 6I remembered my songs in the night. My heart meditated and my spirit asked: 7“Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? 8Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? 9Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?”
10Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand. 11I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. 12I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”
13Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God? 14You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. 15With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. 16The waters saw you, God, the waters saw you and writhed; the very depths were convulsed. 17The clouds poured down water, the heavens resounded with thunder; your arrows flashed back and forth. 18Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind, your lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked. 19Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen. 20You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (Psalm 77)
Psalm 77 paints a beautiful picture of how the perspective of the psalmists changes as he reflects on glorious things about god. Please read the Psalm carefully and pay attention to the change in tone from the start of the Psalm to the end of the Psalm. Please also note the pivotal thoughts the Psalmist highlights in verses 10 – 12.
Question:
Are you spending enough time in God’s word to see His glory in a way that shapes your perspective even with regards to challenging circumstances?
March 12, 2019 at 11:13 am
No I don’t. I do read and study everything I can trying to relate my actions and thoughts in His way. I am sometimes weak but put my trust that he makes me stronger and is always with me.
March 12, 2019 at 12:03 pm
I definitely don’t spend nearly enough time as I should. One thing that really stood out to me from this passage was how quick the turn around in perspective happened. Sometimes, when bad/stressful things happen, it can be days before I can shift my thoughts from lamenting to praising God’s. The Psalmist here seems to do it almost instantly! I feel like that’s a skill to cultivate, being able to quickly identify God’s glory, even in less than ideal circumstances.
March 12, 2019 at 2:18 pm
How do we know how long it took this psalmist to put this down ?
Maybe it took him some time and then he wrote this..
Food for thought.
What do you think?
March 12, 2019 at 12:56 pm
I have found that as I continue to strive to understand the sovereignty of God that my perspective of God has been enlightened. It is still very difficult to go through life’s circumstances but having the right perspective is key. I remember writing down “10 miracles that God did for me and my family” and I would remind myself of this every time I was in a difficult situation and that helped me a lot because I was reminded of God’s goodness. I find it challenging to consistently study God’s word.
March 12, 2019 at 2:19 pm
Great idea to write these down.
Thanks for sharing.
March 12, 2019 at 2:14 pm
Hmmn guilty of not spending enough time in Gods word.
This psalm is great to get me grounded and to remind me to focus on HIM and not the situation,
March 12, 2019 at 5:09 pm
I don’t spend enough time in God’s Word. I need to be God dependent in everything.
Thinking of 2 Timothy 2 :7. “Consider what I say and the Lord give thee understanding in all things”………my thoughts need to be always based on God’s Word; and the only way to consistently do so in everything is to know His Word; diligently read the bible.
I need to memorize more of the bible
eg. James 3:17
But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.
March 13, 2019 at 4:01 am
Thanks for being so frank about diligence in
Ayanna, thanks for being so frank about diligence in reading the Word. I can identify with you. I do not always block out distractions and it is sometimes rushed. The experience is so much better when I take my time, reading prayerfully and meditating on what I read. I can also identify with the psalmist”s first reaction when I face trials: feelings of dejection and anxiety, and questioning God. Spending more quality time in His Word will definitely propel me to see His glory in a way that shapes my perspective to mirror that of the psalmist’s in verses 10-12.
bibl
March 13, 2019 at 10:49 am
I don’t spend as much time as I would like but I am grateful for the times His glory is made evident in the time I have.
Being able to shift perspectives from hopelessness to hopeful is life lesson for me. There I times that I adjust more quickly and other times it takes much longer.
These words have been on my mind for the past few months: There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
March 16, 2019 at 7:00 am
Yes. love Psalm 77.
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I believe that we are all constantly striving to increase our study time, fellowship, Faith, faithfulness, praise & worship,etc…
Thankful for God’s mercy and Grace.
Testimony:
As I endured a very difficult week, I awakened to hear a familiar gospel song. This particular song ministered to my spirit and spoke life to my circumstances.
Personal Reflection- Meditate on the Word of God. The Word of God is powerful and relevant to our everyday circumstances.
Blessings to all.