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Psalm 107:1-3
'Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies. For he has gathered the exiles from many lands, from east and west, from north and south.'
This psalm celebrates the return of the people after the exile. This was a massive moment in national life and the psalmist is clear that it is entirely because of God’s consistent faithfulness. In the psalm, he looks back through different chapters in the life of God’s people and records the fact that, despite repeated human failings, God did not give up on them. Time after time they rejected his guidance and went their own way, but God did not abandon them. The final verse of the psalm sums up the situation beautifully: “Those who are wise will take all of this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord” (Psalm 107:43).
Our own personal stories are not so very different from this. As we look back through our lives there may have been times when we have been totally unaware of God’s presence, and others when we have deliberately gone our own way. There may have been decisions that we made which make us wince with embarrassment now. But, through it all, God is faithful. We need to learn the lessons of our own personal history and use them as a springboard for our worship. We need to speak of Gog’s goodness.
The Israelites’ return from exile was not a neat historical event. It was supremely messy and stretched over a long period of time. When the people returned to their homeland, they were not welcomed with open arms. It took a long time to reconstruct the city of Jerusalem and to restore the temple to make it ready for worship. And our life can be like that too. There are no quick and easy solutions to the challenges we sometimes experience but, through it all, God is faithful. His love can be relied upon. In the messiness of life, we need to make sure that we keep our eyes fixed on God and keep singing our songs of worship.
Question: What is the main reason that you want to praise God today?
Prayer: Loving Father, thank you that you are always faithful and loving. Help me to keep praising you amid all of the twists and turns of life. Amen
Released on 7 Oct 2022
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