May 30, 2023

Scripture: Psalm 42:11 – “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”

What it means

Okay, back to the Psalms we go…Psalm 42 would definitely be classified as a Psalm of Disorientation, as I learned from my last COS class – much language that finds the author down in the dumps and desperately crying out for help. It’s not a pick-me-up reading to say the least…and yet, we find the answer at the tail end of the chapter. Simply, “Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him.” This same question/response combination repeats itself in verses 6 & 11, so as Pastor Jerry taught us, pay particular attention to it…it is important. Even when life has you down, even when you’re at the end of your rope, even when you don’t know where to turn…praise Him. Even when it doesn’t make sense to do so, praise Him. And why is that? He is our Savior, and our God. No matter how badly things may be going for us, that fact alone is more than ample reason for us to praise Him.

What it means to me

Anybody else out there need to hear this besides me? We all go through seasons where our soul is downcast and disturbed, and the last thing on our minds is to praise God…and yet, that is always the correct response from us, irregardless of how our temporary circumstances might be at the moment. If we can step back and look at our lives with a slightly wider lens, we should remember that as followers of Jesus, our future is safe and secure and bright.Even when life is tough, it isn’t eternal. The pain, anxiety…whatever we may be facing will eventually come to an end, but our future plans of eternity won’t end…ever. And for that, my friends…let us put our hope in God and praise Him – our Savior and our God!

Love you guys, talk to you on Thursday!

In Christ,

Brian