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Reading: Psalm 107:1-7

Verse 6: “They cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.”

Psalm 107 opens with a call to give thanks to God because God is good and loving. And because God “redeemed [them] from the hand of the foe.” God most recently rescued them from exile and gathered the people of God back to Israel. Yes, this is a great reason to bring praise and thanksgiving to God. When has God redeemed or rescued you most recently from a time of exile or wilderness wandering? Pause and offer God a moment of praise and thanksgiving for God’s goodness and love.

Moving into verses 4-5 the psalmist details some of their struggles. The people wandered without a home. During the Exodus wilderness time and during the exile in Babylon, the people were without a true home. They were lost spiritually too, often quarreling with and questioning God. The sense of being without a home raises up insecurities and fears, leading often to an increase in feelings of hopelessness and despair. In the struggle it can feel like our life is ebbing away. This all can, in turn, lead us to a hunger and thirst for God’s presence in our lives. Pause and reflect on a time when you felt this way. When did you feel without a faith home, without an assurance of God’s presence in your life?

In verse 6 we read, “They cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.” In their exile or wilderness or struggle, they got to the point of crying out to God. We too will reach that point. Our efforts have failed. Like it was with Israel, God will come in and deliver us too. God will help us back onto the “straight way,” rebuilding our relationship with and our trust and faith in God, bringing us back home. God is good and loving. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, you are faithful and true, loving and forgiving. Time and time again I have cried out to you. Time and time again you are right there, becoming present to me in the exile or wilderness, walking with me through the struggle. I beg you to continue to walk with me as I desire to walk with you. Amen.


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Deep Need

Reading: 1 Samuel 1: 4-20

Verse 10: “In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord”.

Yes, Elkanah loved Hannah more than anything in the world. Yes, Elkanah treated Hannah much better than his other wife. But shame of shames – Hannah could bear him no children. The second wife, Peninnah, had lots of children. Peninnah frequently reminded Hannah of this fact. This only added to Hannah’s already deep sadness and bitterness. Each year when the family would go up to the temple to worship, Hannah would bring her situation before God.

This particular year the provoking by Peninnah and the deep sadness over her barren state seemed especially painful. Instead of simply praying once more, we read, “In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord”. Hannah felt like she was at the end of her rope. It was not an ordinary prayer that she offered up to God. The Spirit was moving in her as she poured out her soul. This was a deep, gut-wrenching prayer. It was as ripe with emotion as it could get.

We too have uttered this type of prayer. We too have been at the end of our rope and have cried out to God. We too have been at the bottom of our pit and have begged for God to reach down and pull us out. We too have felt so desperate that the prayer just poured out from the core of our souls. Our circumstances or the cause of our situation may have been different, but we have all prayed like this before.

What does Hannah’s prayer reveal? What do our prayers of deep emotion reveal? First, they reveal our utter dependence on God. Sometimes we are weak, unable to alter the situation. But God can. Second, they reveal a trust in God not only to hear but to respond. He alone can rescue. He alone can save. God is faithful to Hannah. Samuel is born. God will be faithful to us as well. May we pour out our souls in those times of deep need, trusting in God to do what we cannot.

Prayer: God, thank you for the reminder today of your deep, deep love for us, your children. Like Hannah, may I always seek you in my deepest times of need, trusting in you and in your plan for my life. Amen.


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Presence

Reading: Psalm 77: 1-2 & 11-20

Psalm 77 begins with, “I cried out to God for help; I cried out for God to hear me”.  In this opening line we can feel connection.  Whether recent, long ago, or present, we have all had occasions to cry out to God and to lay out great need at His feet.  When we find ourselves at the end of our hope, we desperately reach out to God and beg Him to hear our prayer.

Then the psalmist goes on remind himself of all that God has done.  In this way we too can recall times we have been in God’s presence in our past and can again rejoice in the blessings we have and are currently experiencing.  Then he goes on to recount God’s goodness and the many miracles God has worked in the past.  In the midst of a difficult time it is important to think on God’s love, goodness, and power.

As the Psalm concludes, the writer recalls God’s leading of the people.  God still desires to lead us each day of our lives as well.  God seeks to be an active and engaged participant in our lives.  In times of stress or trial it can be easy to forget God’s role in our lives.  Even in those times that He seems to be absent, He is always ad near as our next prayer.

God’s desire is to heal and save the world.  The master plan is to make all things new again.  There is hope in our faith.  We do go through dark moments in our lives, but we also dance in God’s light and love.  May today be a day of dancing.  And even if the dance is slow and mournful, may it also be bathed in God’s presence.