Are you forgetful? Maybe you were about to tell someone something and your mind went blank. Or maybe you walked into a store to grab a few items only to leave with ten other things (and none of what you came after in the first place). But what about what God has done for you – have you ever forgotten about that?
Psalm 107:1-3 says,
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good,
for His steadfast love endures forever!
Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
whom He has redeemed from trouble
and gathered from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
God’s people have always been a forgetful people. If you look back through the Bible – Old and New Testaments, you see God consistently redeeming His people from trouble, their forgetting what He did for them, and His reminding them of the grace and salvation again and again.
Psalm 107 gives us a clear picture of this.
We are able to see a variety of things that God saved His people from in this psalm; for example:
- “wandered in desert wastes” (v. 4)
- “hungry and thirsty”, soul-fainting, “trouble…distress” (v. 5)
- “darkness”, “shadow of death”, “prisoners in affliction and in irons” (v. 10)
- “fools through their sinful ways”, “because of iniquities suffered affliction” (v. 17)
Those problems and afflictions are many, and, most of us, can problem identify with many things from that list. But, rather than identify with them in their affliction, we need to identify with them in their response. Every, single, time God’s people gave the same response (vv. 6, 13, 19, 28): “Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress.” Not only was that their constant response, but God delivered them every, single, time
The pattern was the same over and over. God’s people cried out, a description was given of the affliction from which they had been delivered, and a response was prescribed for them (vv. 8, 15, 21, 31): “Let them thank the LORD for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man!”
We have already established that we are forgetful, but let me remind you that God always delivers His people. Whatever affliction we are suffering feels like it will never end because we are in the middle of it. But think back to all of the times that God has helped you, redeemed you, rescued you. God’s track record speaks for itself. But we are forgetful in the middle of the storm. But let the words of Psalm 107 calm the storm inside of you:
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
Psalm 107:28-31
and He delivered them from their distress.
He made the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
Then they were glad that the waters were quiet,
and He brought them to their desired haven.
Let them thank the LORD for His steadfast love,
for His wondrous works to the children of man!
And that’s what we’re singing about this Sunday morning! We are going to be reminded that the steadfast love of the Lord is upon us and available for all! And we are going to trust Him to bring us to our “desired haven” – eternity in His presence!
These verses were on my heart as the worship set came together this week:
Here are our songs:
- God So Loved – This is both a new and old song for us. It is new because we just introduced it last month. It is old because it pretty much walks through John 3:16. This is a great reminder of God’s great love for us and His desire to save people! We can come before Him with failures, addictions, sins of every shape and size and trust Him to save us! We can come to Him as we are and leave His presence forever changed!
- Scripture References / Inspiration for the Song: Matthew 11:28-30, John 7:37-38, John 4:7-15, Matthew 9:10-13, Psalm 28:6, Luke 13:29, John 6:35-40, Isaiah 58:11, Psalm 34:8-9, Proverbs 8:17, Jeremiah 29:13, John 3:16, 1 Corinthians 10:11-14, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 John 1:9, Psalm 55:22, Colossians 1:19-20, Colossians 2:13-14, Isaiah 40:11, Luke 15:20, John 14:3, Matthew 25:23, Revelation 20:14, 1 Corinthians 15:54-57, 3 John 2, Galatians 5:13-16, 1 John 4:9-10, Luke 2:14, Psalm 150, Psalm 17:7
- Revelation Song – This song serves as a reminder of two things. First, the end of the Story has been written – God wins, and the victory has already been won! Second, the end result in our stories – if we have trusted in Christ and are saved – is eternity with Him! He is the reward! We get to sing along with heaven in this song as we sing, word-for-word, songs laid out in the book of Revelation that are sung and will be sung in heaven!
- Scripture References / Inspiration for the Song: Revelation 5:6-12, Revelation 1:8, Revelation 4:8, Romans 3:25, Hebrews 9:5, Revelation 5:13, Revelation 17:14, John 15:5, Psalm 33:8-9, Revelation 4:2-3, Revelation 4:5, Luke 5:17-26
- Mighty to Save – Our God is stronger than whatever is afflicting us. Jesus died, defeating death and hell. He is able to save us from death and sin and bring us to new life in Him. If He can do all of that, what do we have to fear? Let us remember what He has done for us and proclaim it loudly to those around us! Let His light shine through us so that others may have the hope we have by grace through faith in Christ alone!
- Scripture References / Inspiration for the Song: Micah 7:9, Matthew 9:36, 1 Corinthians 13:8, Lamentations 3:22-24, Romans 5:5, Luke 24:47, Titus 3:4-5, Isaiah 11:10, Matthew 12:21, Titus 2:13, Job 9:4-5, Isaiah 63:1, Revelation 1:8, Hebrews 12:2, 1 Corinthians 15:3-5, 2 Timothy 1:10, Matthew 11:28-30, Ephesians 5:18, Luke 9:23-25, Romans 10:9, Matthew 5:14-16, Philippians 2:15-16
- (invitation/closing) You are My Strength – This is what our response to Jesus should look live. We are very clearly acquainted with our sins and failures. We fully understand our inability to save ourselves. So, our only hope – the only appropriate response – is to recognize the strength of our resurrected King – to reach out and grasp His outstretched, nail-scarred hand to receive salvation. He is our salvation, and it can be found in no other. His grace, mercy, strength, and love is enough to lift us out of whatever we face.
- Scripture References / Inspiration for the Song: Psalm 18:1, Isaiah 12:2, Psalm 59:9, Psalm 62:7, Jeremiah 16:19, Psalm 39:7, Psalm 71:5, Psalm 119:49, Psalm 119:116, John 1:16, Psalm 8:1, Acts 4:12, Philippians 2:10-11, Psalm 40:2, Psalm 65:6, Psalm 107:28-31, Psalm 36:5-6
I hope to see you with us, whether you gather in person, in the parking lot via speaker, or on Facebook or YouTube live!
If gathering in person, please remember that masks are recommended and that we need to remain vigilant in our social distancing measures. Continue to pray for those who are sick – not just our members but all those around the world.
Just Keith Harris 