Scripture Reading(s)
Psalm 66:1-12
66:1 Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;
66:2 sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise.
66:3 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! Because of your great power, your enemies cringe before you.
66:4 All the earth worships you; they sing praises to you, sing praises to your name.” Selah
66:5 Come and see what God has done: he is awesome in his deeds among mortals.
66:6 He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. There we rejoiced in him,
66:7 who rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations– let the rebellious not exalt themselves. Selah
66:8 Bless our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard,
66:9 who has kept us among the living, and has not let our feet slip.
66:10 For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried.
66:11 You brought us into the net; you laid burdens on our backs;
66:12 you let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.
Reflections
This is a thanksgiving Psalm, and the Psalmist is being thankful for two different things. The first is for God’s general sovereign power over all of creation and the second is for showing His love and favor to His people.
We read about how God is the creator of all that we see in this world. He is Lord over animals, land, and sea and all living things. Here the Psalmist is calling upon the people to praise God, all the inhabitants of the world are capable of praising God. As God’s creation we are to represent God and point back to His Glory. As God and the creator of this world, He is worthy to be praised by all.
When we stop and think about all that God has done for us and the amazing power He has displayed in and through the story of creation, it should cause us to bend our knees in worship and awe. He is a might and powerful God and that too should give our souls peace knowing that we live under the hand of a God who is strong, loving and caring.
God took the time to display His love for us by carefully and with great detail creating us. He knows our hearts and our deepest struggles. He is always looking out for us, constantly protecting us from things that can cause us harm. As we go about our day to day lives we may not even notice that God is always watching over us moment by moment. Even more so, He is always in control of our future and the things that we dread facing most. He is always there to provide for us the right about of Grace, Comfort and joy we need to face this life.
you let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.
The Psalmist recognizes that God’s people have gone through trials. Yet he praises the Lord because He has delivered His people from such trials. Like the Israelites we have have gone through trials and the Lord has gotten us through. Yet, how often to do thank the Lord for helping us through the trials in our lives?
It is important for us to thank the Lord for all He has done for us. It strengthens our own faith when we recount such things and it is a witness to others. Moreover, it is right to give the Lord thanks and praise.
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