Psalm 66 “Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name. Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man’s behalf! He turned sea into dry land, they passed through waters on foot – come, let us rejoice in him. He rules forever in his power, his eyes watch the nations – let not the rebellious rise up against him. Praise our God, O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard; he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping. For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance. I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you – vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble. I will sacrifice fat animals to you and an offering of rams; I will offer bulls and goats. Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me. I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!”
When was the last time you thanked God for things he has already done? This Psalm celebrates and thanks God for making dry land for man, parting the sea, and constantly watching over us. Those are the easy things to be thankful but the Psalm is not finished. When was the last time you thanked God for his trials, the very trials that are necessary to refine us and make us into what God has called us to be? The writer thanks God for placing them in prison, allowing men to ride over their heads, and the tests they had to endure! It is easy to thank God for the good things in our lives, but we must also understand that the trials we experience are often needed to change our perspective and ultimately our hearts.
After the trials have passed and God has brought us through, what’s next? Often we simply wipe the sweat or tears from our faces and continue on our path. The Psalmist doesn’t do that. He honors his promises that he made to God during his trial. We cry out to God when we are tested, often making promises we have no intention of fulfilling (that is another issue) and when God delivers us we forget we ever promised anything. We lied to God. We want God to honor his promises to us whenever we ask but rarely do we hold ourselves to the same standard. Think about the unfulfilled promises you have made, do not justify why you broke them, accept that you did and repent. We have all prayed, “God if you get me through this one I promise I will NEVER….” God knew your heart when you said it and often times he blessed you anyway – but how might the blessing have been different if you meant it? Did receive EVERYTHING God had for you? Sure in your mind you might say, “I meant to but…” Proverbs 16:2 “All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but the motives are weighed by the Lord.” When you cry out what is your motive – to stop the pain or have you learned what God intended and truly changed your heart or applied the lesson?
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