Psalm 77

¹ I cry aloud to God,
aloud to God, that he may hear me.
² In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
my soul refuses to be comforted.
³ I think of God, and I moan;
I meditate, and my spirit faints. Selah

⁴ You keep my eyelids from closing;
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
⁵ I consider the days of old,
and remember the years of long ago.
⁶ I commune^[a] with my heart in the night;
I meditate and search my spirit:^[b]
7 “Will the Lord spurn forever,
and never again be favorable?
⁸ Has his steadfast love ceased forever?
Are his promises at an end for all time?
⁹ Has God forgotten to be gracious?
Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” Selah
¹⁰ And I say, “It is my grief
that the right hand of the Most High has changed.”

¹¹ I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord;
I will remember your wonders of old.
¹² I will meditate on all your work,
and muse on your mighty deeds.
¹³ Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is so great as our God?
¹⁴ You are the God who works wonders;
you have displayed your might among the peoples.
¹⁵ With your strong arm you redeemed your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

 ¹⁶ When the waters saw you, O God,
when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
the very deep trembled.
¹⁷ The clouds poured out water;
the skies thundered;
your arrows flashed on every side.
¹⁸ The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
your lightnings lit up the world;
the earth trembled and shook.
¹⁹ Your way was through the sea,
your path, through the mighty waters;
yet your footprints were unseen.
²⁰ You led your people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

My sleep patterns have been disturbed lately. Like most of us, my schedule has changed and there are things happening in our nation and world that are troubling me. The words of the Psalmist sound familiar:

² In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
⁴ You keep my eyelids from closing;

 ⁵ I consider the days of old, and remember the years of long ago.
⁶ I commune^[a] with my heart in the night;
I meditate and search my spirit:

I seem to be going to bed earlier these last few weeks, and waking more in the night. I am very fortunate that I have stayed healthy. And I am blessed that you who support the church are keeping me employed. I know that I don’t have the troubles that are plaguing many, but I have found myself “communing with my heart in the night” more often than before.

And in those prayers, I might do well to borrow some words from the Psalmist:

¹¹ I will call to mind the deeds of the Lord;
I will remember your wonders of old.
¹² I will meditate on all your work,
and muse on your mighty deeds.
¹³ Your way, O God, is holy.
What god is so great as our God?
¹⁴ You are the God who works wonders;
you have displayed your might among the peoples.
¹⁵ With your strong arm you redeemed your people,
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

¹⁶ When the waters saw you, O God,
when the waters saw you, they were afraid;
the very deep trembled.
¹⁷ The clouds poured out water;
the skies thundered;
your arrows flashed on every side.
¹⁸ The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
your lightnings lit up the world;
the earth trembled and shook.
¹⁹ Your way was through the sea,
your path, through the mighty waters;
yet your footprints were unseen.
²⁰ You led your people like a flock
by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

When in doubt about the future, sometimes it is wise to look back to the past. Tonight, if sleep seems fleeting, maybe I will meditate on God’s wonders and works, and muse on God’s mighty deeds.

Prayer

God, let me make use of the whole day and night ahead, as a time to ponder Your works and praise Your name. Amen.