Psalms 77:7-14
“Will the Lord spurn forever,
and never again be favorable?
Has his steadfast love forever ceased?
Are his promises at an end for all time?
Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” Selah
Then I said, “I will appeal to this,
to the years of the right hand of the Most High.”
I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
I will ponder all your work,
and meditate on your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
you have made known your might among the peoples.
Tag: What To Do When We Think God is Gone!!
Psalm 77 is a Psalm of the song writer Asaph. Asaph was assigned to the royal choirs by King David and Solomon. Asaph, in the above portion of Psalm 77, is, apparently, in a tight spot. He feels as though that the trouble soured him is all he has and God is, somehow, missing. Asaph complains that it “feels” like God is gone. He asks, “Has his steadfast love forever ceased?” Are His promises at an end for all times? He is basically in a state of deep depression. He even asks, “Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” So, Asaph, like most of us at some point in our lives, is thinking that whatever he has done in his life has stop God from caring, loving or saving and turned God ageist us.
Yet, note the solution. He goes on to say, “I will ponder all your work and mediated on your mighty deeds.” In the midst of the worst trouble of his life, what does this believe in God do? He changes what he thinks about. He begins to think about all the great things God has done for him and other peoples of faith. After all this thinking and meditation on God vs his own situation, he concludes, “You are the God who works wonders. You make known your might among the peoples.” Asaph quit looking at his situation and gazed at his God. The same was true for Job. Job was obsessed with his situation. In Job 38-41 Job is asked by God, to consider His mighty deeds:
Job 38:4
“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
In the midst of Elijah’s depression, God made Himself known in his greatness (1 Kings 19). Elijah was depressed, feared for his life and saw no hope. God, put him in a cave and then showed him His glory. He wanted Elijah’s eyes off his circumstances and gazing only on the greatness of God.
When Paul had a “thorn” in his side (most suspect he was losing his eye sight), he pleaded with God three times to remove it. Instead God said, “My strength is made perfect in your weakness” (2 Corinthians 12). God used his weakness to reveal His power and strength. Paul quit looking at the loss of his eyes and, through the eyes of faith, saw God’s power.
In the midst of our hurt, pain and suffering, we are to gaze at the power and work of God. What happened in Psalm 77 when Asaph did that?
Psalms 77:19
Your way was through the sea,
your path through the great waters;
yet your footprints were unseen.
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