DAILY READING
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REFLECTION
The Unbearable Weight of Missing the Light
by Dan Kidd
I rather like this psalm. Well, all but for the last third of it. The psalmist sings such a great worship song but then... Then he begins to worry about things he shouldn't be concerning himself with. In fairness, this psalmist doesn't know us. He doesn't know how good, and faithful, and impressive we all are. If only the psalmist knew us, he'd know that we would never be like those hard-hearted Israelites, who--having just been liberated out from under the foot of their enemy, and having been led by the very presence of God, and whom the Lord had claimed as his beloved and blessed children--would find things to complain about! We aren't the type of people who would ever skip an opportunity to sing the rightful praises of the Lord. Surely the psalmist, if he knew us at all, wouldn't worry about us being discontent with God's lavish generosity, or feel it necessary to warn us not to look back to the places and things from which we'd been liberated and wax nostalgic about the "good ole days" in captivity.
After all, we know that God is the King of Kings; That the Lord is great and that he shaped and holds all of the earth and sea in hands. He has rescued us and he is the Rock on which we plant our feet firmly. Surely we would never find ourselves so thin in faith as to feel like we would need to test God or quarrel with him! The very God who has set the path out before us, we wouldn't dare be distracted by all the other things that might beckon us to take our eyes off of the Lord and his Way. Those Israelites (so unrelatable) were set on a clear path towards that precious land, designated for them--overflowing with milk and honey--and all they had to do was to follow in step with the One who promised it all to them. Could you imagine wandering so carelessly away from such a good Shepherd?
How fortunate for us that we, pure and righteous through-and-through, would never be like those Israelites! But, you know, just in case, Lord, lead us not into temptation.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION: Father, the honest truth is that, in spite of your goodness, faithfulness, and generosity, I am prone to grumble, mistreat, and wander from you. You, Lord, are worthy of my thanks and my praise and too often I withhold or delay it. I have not taken notice of all that you have gifted me with. I have not loved as well as I could those you've placed in my care to love. I pray that you would lead me from these temptations, and that your Spirit would awaken my soul to your daily mercies.
I love this Dan. And I can certainly see myself in your words. You've given me much to consider. Thank you.
Certainly you have written this ”with tongue in cheek”. Aren’t we all “those” people some times 🥴