Praising and Connecting with God Always – Psalm 147

A text – Psalm 147:12-20

¹² Extol the Lord, O Jerusalem!  Praise your God, O Zion!
¹³ For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.
¹⁴ He grants peace within your borders; he fills you with the finest of wheat.
¹⁵ He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.
¹⁶ He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.
¹⁷ He hurls down hail like crumbs— who can stand before his cold?
¹⁸ He sends out his word and melts them; he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
¹⁹ He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
²⁰ He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances.
Praise the Lord!

A reflection:

The last few psalms in the Book of Psalms are in praise of God – community praise. A leader says to the people “Praise the Lord,” and then he tells the people why: “for he strengthens, he blesses, he grants…”

In today’s world we might think that all the things delivered in these verses come from our own human construction (strong bars at the gate, good food to eat) or come from the natural world (snow, frost, hail, cold – yes, in Fargo we know a lot about those things!). But the song leader and the congregation know that all these things come from the hand of God…

Look at verse 18: Yahweh “sends out his word and melts them.” Verse 19: “He declares his word to Jacob” – here is the Word, flowing out from God once again. Jesus, as we have been reminded in our passages from John’s gospel this past week, is the Word. And God keeps sending his Word out and things keep on happening. It was not just once long ago. It is a present day occurrence. Israel counted itself very special to be in relationship with God, a relationship such as no other nation had. They thanked God that they were the beneficiaries of God’s abundant gifts.

Perhaps we can take a page out of ancient Israel’s book of spiritual practices. The people prayed several times a day, thanked God regularly for the blessings God showered upon them, and even when they were sorrowful, lamented to God, whom they were pretty sure was listening to them. Could such practices work for me and you? We might make a resolution this year to try acknowledging the wonder and blessing of God in the morning and at night. We might find ourselves noticing more often each day the goodness that comes our way. We might even decide to share that goodness with others.

A prayer:

Lord God, thank you for loving us. Thank you for the example of ancient Israel and their connection in daily life to you and your provision. Help us to live more in connection with you. Help us to remember that we are part of your life and your future, even now. Amen.