Remember Me, O Lord
- Jilian Brown
- Oct 14, 2023
- 3 min read
Psalm 106: 1-5
1 Praise the Lord! Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. 2 Who can speak of the mighty deeds of the Lord, Or can show forth all His praise? 3 How blessed are those who keep justice, Who practice righteousness at all times!
4 Remember me, O Lord, in Your favor toward Your people; Visit me with Your salvation, 5 That I may see the prosperity of Your chosen ones, That I may rejoice in the gladness of Your nation, That I may glory with Your inheritance.
I have a very bright former voice student whom I have the pleasure of staying in touch with over the years. We have been discussing some Psalms this week and our conversations made me consider the Psalms in light of the world events this week. I love Psalms because as someone who struggles with emotional expression, they are a place in Holy Scripture where God saw fit to allow the joy, pain, disappointment, anger, sadness, grief, elation, and most of all praise of His people to be expressed. Sometimes the authors' words help me make sense of my own feelings. As I read the lectionary verses for today, Psalm 106 stood out as I am begging God for His presence of light to be seen in what feels like pervasive darkness in the world.
I have many friends who are Jewish. Some with family members directly in harm's way. Some who were on their way themselves this week to visit family. All with broken hearts over this week's evil events traumatically tied to all past anti-semitic events. I have found it difficult to focus on anything else this week and I am not them.
Among this despair, I know others facing their own individual darkness this week. I experience day in and day out the stories of children I teach with their own heartbreaking stories. Sometimes it all feels like too much. A simple song came to me this week as I grieved along with my brothers and sisters facing so much darkness in the world. Psalm 106 reminds us to give thanks to the Lord for He is GOOD! We say that phrase often and those of us who grew up with Chris Tomlin sang it a lot a lot, but I wonder if we might take a minute to ponder it. We give thanks to God because He is good. He is the author of good. He is the giver of goodness. He is the bringer of good. He is the model of good. His ways--and only His ways--are good. My song concludes with the fruit of the Spirit to remind me of how to attempt God's goodness by allowing His Spirit to produce the fruit in me when I know I definitely do not possess it on my own.
Love.
Joy.
Peace.
Patience.
Kindness.
Goodness.
Faithfulness.
Gentleness.
Self-control.
V.3-4 of Psalm 106 particularly stand out to me today:
"How blessed are those who keep justice, Who practice righteousness at all times! Remember me, O Lord, in Your favor toward Your people; Visit me with Your salvation"
Let us be as these people. Let us practice righteousness and keep justice at all times. It is not easy and will rarely be mainstream or popular. As Matthew Henry's concise commentary states, "None of our sins or sufferings should prevent our ascribing glory and praise to the Lord. The more unworthy we are, the more is his kindness to be admired. And those who depend on the Redeemer's righteousness will endeavour to copy his example, and by word and deed to show forth his praise."
Remember us, O Lord. May your magnificent salvation be at the forefront of our hearts and minds as we rise each day. Bring your goodness and perfect peace, we pray. May we have the courage to seek justice, righteousness and the narrow path before selfish gain and the easy wide road.
Lyrics:
When it all feels like too much
The words that I say aren’t enough
To combat the silent tears on the ground
You are more than enough
You and your unfailing love
To wipe away the pain of it all
You alone are God
And I will lift you up
With the sound of my praise I worship you
Taking the weight of the cross
You bore the cost of it all
And yet you lean down and quietly say my name
And when I don’t know know what to do
You still always come through
Holding my hand, walking the road before me
Love, joy, and peace
Patience and kindness
Goodness and faithfulness
Gentleness and self-control
You alone are God
And I will lift you up
With the sound of my praise I worship you
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