Save us, Lord our God, and gather us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. 48 Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, “Amen!” – Psalm 106:47-48
Do you sit down and recount the wonderful blessings of God? We often know of God’s blessings, and if we get to talking about thing, we find that there is a lot for which we can give thanks. Sometimes those blessings are easy to point out, others, we have to sit and think about a bit. We have to think about the little moments as well as the big moments. We have to recount the story in which we are a part. We should be reminded that we are written into a story that starts and ends with God. For God is Alpha and Omega beginning and end, and we are blessed to be included in that grand story of faith.
The writer of psalm 106 must have been a historian. This psalm of praise recounts the story of all the things that God has done for the people of Israel, of how they were once slaves, but God redeemed them. The people of Israel often recount the story of who they are, because they realize that it is a story that is beyond them as an individual, but a story that makes them one people with their God.
In the same way, we become a part of a story in Christ that is greater than our individual story of faith. I sometimes think this is a difficult thing in our modern culture. We are so focused on the “I” of life, and sometimes we focus on those who are closest to us, relationally, but rarely do we realize that we are part of a story that is so much bigger. We often tend to think about personal testimony when it comes to faith, or we tell of the blessings we have known of God, but this psalm should remind us that we are a greater “us” in Christ. In Christ we enter the great plural “you;” or in our grandest southern dialect, we enter the "y’all.” I sometimes think we would better understand some of the salvation story if we inserted the “y’all.” Like – Y’all are saved by grace through faith.
Being a part of the grander story, reminds us that we are a part of a family that is being called out as the psalmist says, “from the nations.” For we are a part of God who is working to bring us together as one. It is for this reason, that we as a grander people are able to shout the “amen.”
Today, I hope you can give thanks to God for the salivation God has brought you, but better, give thanks that y’all have been called together to be the family of God, for the glory of God from everlasting to everlasting. In this family we shall shout the praise to God, and join the grand, Amen.
Grace & Peace,
Sam