Psalm 124 - Lke a bird

Read: Psalm 124 vs 1-8

Today we come to the next of our ‘Song of Ascents’, and this is another one written by David. This psalm pictures the people making their way to Jerusalem, and yet as they do they are very aware that this was a journey they might never have made. There’s an old fashioned phrase (that I associate with my Granny’s generation) where people used to talk about ‘being spared’. It’s the idea of having been given life, and receiving life and each day as a gift from God.

In this psalm David gives thanks that he has been spared, and that he is where he is, on his way to worship. David looks back (vs 2) and reflects upon how ‘if the LORD had not been on our side’ he would have been swept away by torrents of abuse and opposition. As we know David had many of these experiences in his life, and yet he writes these words conscious that many other believing people will be able to identify with his experiences and in that sense his words can become their words.

Life, for all of us, is a gift, a gift to be received and enjoyed with thanksgiving. Sometimes it is only when we do look back and remember things we have experienced and tough times that we have come through that we can truly give thanks, acknowledging that it has been the LORD who has been our Saviour, our Helper and our Deliverer. 

In the Bible looking back is never an act of mere nostalgia, nor a hankering after better times. For the person of faith looking back becomes a launchpad for the onward journey to come. I imagine David pausing to sing and pray Psalm 124, and then pressing on with vs 8 ringing in his ears, and the ears of those around him:

‘Our help is in the name of the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.’

Prayer: Father thank You for the gift of life. Thank You for all the ways in which You have watched over me bringing me to this point in my life. Help me to keep placing my trust in You. In Jesus' Name. Amen