Today’s reading is Psalm 73-77 .
Do you ever sit down to pray but lack words? Has there been a time when you wanted to praise God for all He has done but somehow fall short in forming the right thing to say? The book of Psalms is 150 chapters of poetry for the expression of praise, worship and confession to God. It is full of honest struggle, sin, and confusion that turns into beautiful praise and the reminder of who God is and all He has done for us. Today’s reading is focused on chapters 73-77. Asaph, a leader of one of David’s Levitical choirs, has been accredited with writing Psalms 73-89. This third section of Psalms parallels the third book of the Pentateuch – Leviticus.
In these chapters we get to know Asaph and his struggles. In chapter 73 he is struggling with the feeling that the wicked are prospering all around him while he is being so “good” and not having the same kind of outward success. Sound familiar? In the first 16 verses he is complaining to God, asking how this could happen. He struggling to find the answers on his own. Finally in verse 17 he took some action and gained new perspective.
“Then one day I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I thought about the destiny of the wicked.”
He stopped complaining and questioning and went to God. In his “sanctuary” he was reminded of God’s promises. As he worked through his questions he realized that their reward is temporary and his reward will be eternal. The reward is not on this Earth. He goes on to praise God for not turning away from him in the midst of his questioning and still belonging to him. When we recognize this in our own lives our perspective changes drastically in how we work, spend our money, spend our time. Do we have an eternal perspective or is it only success in the here and now? Are we mad and envious of other people’s success in comparison to our own? Thankfully, God allows us the opportunity to question and even complain a little. He is waiting to provide the answer but we may have to take a step towards his “sanctuary” and out of our heads to get it.
Psalm 73:21-28 “Then I realized how bitter I had become, how pained I had been by all I had seen. I was so foolish and ignorant. I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you. Yet I still belong to you; you are holding my right hand. You will keep on guiding me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Who have I in heaven but you? I desire you. More than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever. But those who desert him will perish, for you destroy those who abandon you. But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do.”
Then in Psalm 77 we hear Asaph again in turmoil. He is in deep distress and holds nothing back in telling God all about it in verses 1-10. He is crying out to God. He feels rejected, overwhelmed, and lost. And then his thoughts turn around again in verses 11-20 and he starts acknowledging all God has done in the past and all the ways He has proven himself faithful. Reminding ourselves of Gods provision in the past is a great way of dissolving our current state of discontent. He changed his focus from his present situation to worshipping God for all he has done and it changed him.
Even though I did not write the words in these Psalms I am amazed and how they resonate with me. I feel like I could have written them for my present situations. And I am thankful they are here to remind me that it is ok to question and struggle but also to teach me to worship in the midst of my struggle and to remember all that God has done.