Selah

Psalm 67:1-3 says “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, (Selah) that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!”

There are three things here that many of us want and need in our lives. 

First we need graciousness for our lives. The other word often used for the word gracious is merciful. ‘God be merciful to us’ is how the text can read. I know as I look at my life short as it has been so far there is a lot that I need God to be merciful to my life about, things I need to be forgiven for, things I am glad God didn’t just squish me like a bug about. Truth is all of us have these things in our lives. And in the Lord’s prayer we are also reminded to forgive as we want to be forgiven. Some days harder than others to do and I am glad God does forgive out of mercy. 

The second thing we are to ask God for is his blessing. The hard thing is sometimes knowing that blessings are not always things we can see or touch. Sometimes there are things that are real challenges that in the end we learn are true blessings. I know I don’t like pain and suffering but often I hear from folk how even those are blessings as one learns the lessons of life. Too often we look at bigger and better as being blessed and that is not always the way God works in our lives. May we not only be blessed but also have the spiritual eyes to recognize the blessings God sends our way for what they really are. 

The third thing God wants us to desire is that ‘his face may shine upon us’. This has to do with his glory shining through us into the world in which we live. The old catechism asked the question of what is the chief end of man? Or as I modernize it so I can understand it: what is the purpose of our lives? And the answer comes back: To glorify God and enjoy him forever. It is nice to know something so eternal can still be a part of our day to day life if we ask for it. It comes out of the relationship we can have with Jesus.

There is also this wee odd word –Selah—that simply means- Stop... Think about it.

And as we find these three things in God we can then be part of the ‘peoples’ who praise God...

So my prayer for my life this week is Psalm 67 and my prayer for your life this week is that you too find Psalm 67 for your own life...

Hoping you will take time to Selah Psalm 67 in your own life,

Rev. Jon Bergen