We live for seventy years or so (with luck we might make it to eighty), Surprise us with love at daybreak; then we’ll skip and dance all the day long. Make up for the bad times with some good times; we’ve seen enough evil to last a lifetime. Let your servants see what you’re best at— the ways you rule and bless your children. And let the loveliness of our Lord, our God, rest on us, confirming the work that we do. Oh, yes. Affirm the work that we do! Psalm 90, selected verses The Message Balance. The idea of balance in life seems to be motivating Moses, when he was writing this particular Psalm. He was encouraging his God to remember that his people, the Hebrew people, had seen plenty of suffering. Were they not due for some good times, to make up for all of the bad times they had seen? Moses poses this question to the Lord.
One of the things which can happen to people, especially when circumstances go badly, is for them to get stuck in a downward spiral. One thing goes wrong, and all of the sudden, they cannot see anything going right. They focus only on the negative, and become more and more negative, and more and more hopeless. When a person has been spiraling down for a long time, it can be very hard to rescue them. It is always good to have some positive things to look forward to, at all times. It may be imperative to our mental and spiritual health to have positive events to anticipate when things are not going well. May we all take a balanced approach to life, absorbing the bad, but celebrating the good. I have always been heartened that Jesus’ first miracle was performed at a wedding, a time of celebration. Our God is God of celebrations and blessings! Today is my father’s 81st birthday. While our celebration of this milestone will be different than originally planned, we will nonetheless celebrate. We are making up for the bad times with some good times: a very biblical concept! Prayer Joyful God, When we see no good in front of us, remind us of Your faithfulness. You love us and care for us through all times, even difficult ones. We celebrate Your blessings, and look forward to them returning in abundance. Heal us, and restore our nation and world. We pray this prayer in Jesus’ name. Amen.
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