When I read Psalms 124, it is all about the people of Israel being thankful that they were delivered from their enemies because God was on their side. If it had not been for the LORD they would have drowned and been swept away by the waters. If it had not been for the LORD, they would have been caught in a trap like a bird and they would not be set free. What I love about this special song is that it is all about the community as a whole celebrating what God had done for them. It is not a song about just one person or one event, but it is a song that gives thanks to God for what He did for a community of people.
When I take a look at how our communities can suffer from depression, suicide and addictions, it is important to remember all that God does for us as a community. We can easily become sad or mad or hurt when things don’t work out the way we wanted them to work out. Our hearts suffer, our minds suffer, our emotions suffer, and our bodies suffer. Yet, when we remind ourselves about all the wonderful ways God has come through for us in the past, it helps to heal our hearts of any brokenness that we are currently going through.
Psalms 124 says, “If the Lord had not been on our side— let Israel say—if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us; the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, the raging waters would have swept us away.” Have you ever felt like there was a circumstance in your life that was swallowing you alive? Have you ever felt like there was a situation about to sweep over you and sweep you far away? I know I have.
I never thought I was going to quit drinking, but now by the grace of God I have been sober 16 years. I never thought I would lose weight, but lately I have made progress losing weight. I never thought I would be a pastor, but now I pastor a church.
The interesting thing about this song in Psalms 124 is that it is a community that is giving thanks. There is power in numbers and there is power when we combine our stories and celebrate together. When one person tells their story of what God has done it is like turning on one light in the darkness, but when 20 people tell their story it is like turning 20 lights on in the darkness.
We have to learn to tell our stories more often. As 2016 comes to an end, think of ways where you can tell stories as a community of what God has done for you. You will be amazed at the results and how it will help to heal everyone’s broken hearts.
Psalms 124 goes on to say, “Praise be to the Lord, who has not let us be torn by their teeth. We have escaped like a bird from the fowler’s snare; the snare has been broken, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”
You see, when you have the Lord on your side you do not have just anybody on your side. You have the Maker of heaven and earth on your side. You do not have a god with a small “g” on your side, you have God with a capital G on your side. Keeping this in mind makes all the difference in the world when trying to focus on healing your broken heart.
In life there will always be troubles and hardships, but how we react to them will make all the difference in the world in your attitude and perspective. If we react by thinking that, “here comes another problem and my life is always full of problems then we will be on edge more, but if we say, “thank You LORD for all the hardships You have helped me through since I was born” then it will change the way we see the world and other people in the world.
You can say phrases such as, “thank You LORD that when I was in that accident that I didn’t get killed and that I only had a broken arm.” Or, “Thank You LORD that when I claimed personal bankruptcy that I was able to get discharged from it and now I am working my way through the process of rebuilding my credit.” Or, “Thank You LORD that when I got sick last year and ended up in the hospital that it wasn’t worse than it was and I didn’t lose my job.” Or, “Thank You LORD that I was adopted and grew up in a godly family because if I hadn’t then maybe I never would have learned so much about You.” The list can go on and one with regards to the things we can be thankful for.
God wants to heal your broken heart and the more individuals that can learn to be thankful then the stronger our communities will be as we move forward into another new year. If it had not been for God being on our side we would have been in a lot of trouble. “Thank You, Jesus!”
Parry Stelter is originally from Alexander First Nation and is founder of Word of Hope Ministries and lives in Edmonton, Alberta. http://www.wordofhopeministries.ca
