As I started the day, I received a text from a friend. I must say, I am terrible at reading texts right away, so I didn’t read my friend’s text for a while. I’m not sure why I am always slow to respond to texting. I guess it is a flaw I have. Perhaps, I don’t like the pressure of having to respond right away. Having to think of things to say. I like to process things and have a well-ordered reply. Therefore, I just don’t read them quickly. As a side note: I apologize if you have texted me and I haven’t responded quickly. I am working on this problem of mine, so please forgive me. I am not even sure why I divulged all of this to you, my dear reader, but I guess I just needed to clear the air.
Back to the story: As I started the day, I received a text from a friend. It was a pretty simple text. Good morning! Read Psalm 107. They shared a few more words. End of text. I replied with a simple text as well.
I love Psalm 107. I have read it hundreds of times. But per my friend’s request, I read Psalm 107 again. Wow! It spoke to me like never before. The Psalmist begins the chapter with, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever.” Now, there is a whole message there.
When is the last time you stopped just to thank the Lord for His goodness to you? When have you recounted all the ways that God has blessed you?
I know for me, I often take for granted all the good things God has done for me. I think of God’s goodness when He saved me and set me free from my life of sin. I think of that moment, when I was 19, on July 27, 1991, when God arrested my heart and I surrendered my life to Jesus. I have never been the same. As time wears on, I have to guard my heart and remind myself never to forget what He saved me from.
As you read through Psalm 107, you find the many things that God had done for the people of Israel. Over and over, we see that they were in a predicament, they called out to God, “Lord, help!” and he delivered them. Throughout this Psalm, we see different situations that God responds and saves them from their distress.
There are a couple phrases that are repeated in Psalm 107.
“Lord, help! they cried in their trouble”
“and He saved them from their distress.”
“Let them praise the Lord for His great love and for the wonderful things He has done for them.”
There is a pretty simple process in this great chapter:
Cry out for help.
Receive help from the Lord,
Praise Him for what He has done.
My friend, this should be a mark in our life. We should never hesitate to call on God in the midst of your troubles. When He helps you and brings a breakthrough, you should never hesitate to praise Him for what He has done. We should continually give thanks for the good things God has done for us. There is one characteristic of the writers of the Psalms. No matter what they faced, they still understood that they must praise and worship the Lord.
Hard times may come. Life throws us a curveball. Things happen that we cannot control. But what we can control is our praise. Make it a habit to praise Him in the good times and the bad. Praise Him in the morning and in the evening. Praise the Lord at all times! It will make you feel better.
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