“Memories: a mixed blessing”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Monday, May 15, 2023
Psalm 77 (Forward, p. 17) CEV p. 601
It is probably just as well: today’s psalm comes with a title, “A psalm by Asaph for Jeduthun, the music leader”, but other than knowing that these two individuals served King David in his worship ministry, the title really tells us next to nothing of the specific circumstances that prompted it. And what that means is that the psalm is quite appropriate to all sorts of times in life, and particularly to those ‘dark nights of the soul’, those times either of physical pain and difficulty or of a sense of spiritual ‘aloneness’ and separation from God.
Here, in today’s psalm, memory looms highly. On the one side, the psalmist remembers all too well, the closeness, the intimacy, that he once enjoyed with God. He remembers how God was ‘there for him’ and how God acted on his behalf. Now he feels deserted and forsaken, and wonders what has happened to God and to His promises. He is full of doubts and questions. He wonders whether God is angry with him for some reason and is punishing him, and wonders whether God will once again return with His favour and goodness. It is the fact of his past memories of how he related to God that makes his present suffering so difficult and so painful.
But, then there is also the flipside of his memories: he remembers how God has acted for His people Israel throughout the ages. He thinks of God’s wonders and His miracles, and particularly of God’s action in delivering Israel through the Red (Reed) Sea, and then leading them through the work of Moses and Aaron. Our psalmist doesn’t quite get around to mentioning it explicitly, but surely these memories, this remembrance of God’s past goodness and mercy gives him hope for the present. After all, Israel wasn’t exactly ‘right on’ in its relations with God and still God was there for them and intervened on their behalf. So, no matter what is going on in Asaph’s life right now, no matter what is going on between him and God, he can well expect God to hear his appeal and help him in his present distress.
And so it is with all of us: no matter what our present circumstance and no matter where we stand with God right now, we can always go to Him and know that He will indeed hear us, and help us. God never shuts His ears to the petitions of any of His people, even though it might well seem to be the case at times! Thanks be to God. Amen.
Forward notes: “I will remember the works of the Lord, and call to mind your wonders of old time. I will meditate on all your acts and ponder your mighty deeds” (verses 11-12).
“There’s an old discussion among theologians about God’s immanence (closeness) and God’s transcendence (God’s otherness; the idea that God is somewhere ‘out there’). What is interesting to me is how we experience these abstract ideas. For some, God always seems to be elsewhere as a creative cosmic presence who is personally removed from present reality. Others experience God more like a best friend—not particularly majestic but always close.
“I would argue that most of us are somewhere between those extremes. We recognize that God wields the power of creation, and we have moments of immanence where that same God seems very close. For me, these experiences are often tied to God’s wonders of old. Places like the Grand Canyon or Point Loma remind me to meditate on God’s mighty deeds. As I consider that our fragile island home is just a small part of the cosmos, I marvel that, in all this vastness, we are held in the palm of God’s hand.”
Moving Forward: “What places remind you to meditate on God’s mighty deeds? Share them (pictures too!) at #ForwardDaybyDay.”