Reflections on Psalm 103:1-4

In church last night our pastor read through Psalm 103, pausing at various points to allow people to testify to God’s grace and help in their life as it related to a particular selection. I sat quietly and just listened to others. Not because there was nothing I could have said, but because I am still working through some issues that I feel need some degree of resolution before I’ll find myself at a point where I’m confident enough that I can speak up at church and know that I am speaking because God wants me to speak and not simply to be heard for my own, self-centered, reasons. It’s true that I’m also painfully shy and that also plays a role in my hesitancy to speak up. Perhaps it is even true that my shyness, more than anything else, keeps me silent. If that is the case, then I trust God will help me to overcome that when there is something He wants me to say.

In the meantime, the following are some of my thoughts as they relate to the first four verses of Psalm 103. (I’ve used the New American Standard Bible for scripture passages as it tends to be the version I read most often).

¹Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name.

As a starting point, I want to thank God for all of the help He has given me over the past couple of weeks. I've had some struggles, but God has helped me begin to recognize the deeper areas that are at the root of some of these surface issues I find myself struggling with. I thank God for that. In the past there have been times when I never was able to get my focus off the surface issues long enough to let God show me the deeper areas of need that require the bulk of the remedy God desires to provide. As I am learning to allow Him to refocus my attention on the things that matter most, I'm finding it easier and easier to let some of the surface struggles go. They just don't seem that important anymore. So, I do bless His holy name for patiently teaching me, moment by moment, the lessons I most need to learn.

²Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits.

To say I'm amazed at the benefits God has showered on my life, would be an understatement. These past two weeks have been two of the most amazing weeks of my life as I learn how to rest in God's love and allow Him to work out the details of all the issues that have so long overwhelmed me. There is no doubt that I have many lessons to learn and many long roads ahead to traverse yet. But learning to rest in the love of God seems to be 99% of the battle in most things and I'm thankful for the benefit of knowing God is always present in every situation to provide the help and grace I need.

³Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases;

I don't think there can be any greater peace in this life than the peace that comes from knowing that all your sins have been forgiven. "My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more." I don't have to live in fear that there is some sin somewhere that somehow got overlooked. God has taken the whole sordid lot of them and forgiven them; not because I deserve that forgiveness, but because of His great love and mercy. And even beyond forgiveness, God has already begun the work of healing so many of the diseased areas of my mind and emotions. For many years I've believed a great number of lies regarding who I am and who God is. Already God is teaching me many things about being the man He created me to be and I am trusting Him to continue to do the work that needs done in my life as I walk with Him daily.

⁴Who redeems your life from the pit, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;

Verse 4 is probably the verse that spoke most to me as I read through this Psalm. When I look at my past and see how God has protected me from sure destruction (the KJV actually uses the word "destruction" instead of "pit"), I'm overwhelmed by His love and compassion. There have been many times when I could have become involved in situations that could have destroyed my life in so many ways; yet God, in His mercy, held me back. At times I tried my best to jump into things that I knew were sin and far from God's plan for my life. Even during my most stubborn and rebellious times, God was working to keep me from a lifestyle that would have led to certain destruction and landed me in a pit from which I might never have escaped. I believe the prayers of family and friends can be credited with the sense of hesitancy that held me back from many of the things I could have become involved in. So, thank you to all who have prayed for me over the years.

Someday, perhaps, I will write more in depth on some of these things (or even on subsequent verses from Psalm 103) but, for now, it is enough to say that God's mercy and love have changed and are continually changing my life. My mind was so messed up before I came back to God that I honestly thought it could never be made right again. But God has worked a miracle and changed so much for me already. I understand that the renewing of my mind will be a continuing process, but God seems to have stepped in and worked in such a way as to reverse years of wrong thinking in ways that I would never have dreamed possible in such a short period of time. I'm praising Him for His indescribable goodness and looking forward to each new day of walking in His love.