Restore us, O God; let you face shine, that we may be saved. – Psalm 80:3
“Restore us, O God” is a phrase repeated throughout this psalm of lament. It is a lamenting prayer that in the church today echo. We long for the days when we can gather again in the place where we once gathered as a church family. We look forward to seeing the faces of those whom we miss dearly. We long for the embrace of those whom we call friend, but even more sister and brother in Christ.
I share in this lament, today. We have missed 20 weeks of worship together due to the ongoing pandemic so far. I wish I could tell you when the next time we can potentially gather will be, but as of right now I cannot. We are a church in exile. Yet, we should understand that the church, the people of God, have been exiled before. This may be a great time to remember that God’s people have faced challenges, have faced being away from one another, and have even faced disease, pandemic, plague before, but the church remained.
The fact that the church, as people who worship the God of Abraham and Isaac, who believe in the one who came from God, Jesus God’s only Son, have remained steadfast through all the ups and downs of the centuries should be proof enough of God’s everlasting salvation. As we are prolonged in our time away from one another, God remains steadfast. God’s Holy Spirit rests with us, and gives us grace to make it through each day. We know God’s face will shine on us again, and we will be saved. Knowing this, gives us a hope to continue enduring.
Endurance, however, is a different kind of struggle. Endurance requires not giving up, when that is all we want to do. Take for example, someone who starts a new routine of exercise, or even a diet. Anyone who starts something new, will have be able to push through the thoughts and feelings of not being able to do it, not being able to keep up, and not being able to succeed. However, endurance produces perseverance, and perseverance produces character, so says Paul (Romans 5:3-5). What we find, is that during this prolonged exile our character, who we truly are, will show. When we look into the mirror we will either see someone who’s character is producing hope that the world will get better, or we may see a character that needs more work. Truthfully, many days we will see both.
I know this struggle, because I am in this struggle with you, desiring to see the world, and especially the church come together, but enduring to keep the hope that the church that gathers in the future will be as strong if not stronger than the one before this exile.
May we continue to persevere in our prayers for one another and the world, that God would restore us, again, and let His almighty face shine upon us, that we might be saved. Amen.
Grace & Peace,
Sam