Remembering Outside Your Cloud (Psalm 77)

Psalm 77:6, 11-13

 

6 I said, “Let me remember my song in the night;

let me meditate in my heart.”

Then my spirit made a diligent search:

 

11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord;

yes, I will remember your wonders of old.

12 I will ponder all your work,

and meditate on your mighty deeds.

13 Your way, O God, is holy.

What god is great like our God?

 

            Psalm 77 begins with a sorrowful minor chord. The psalmist is in distress. We do not know why. All we know is that his heart is breaking. When he thinks about his situation, and when he thinks about the Lord, he hurts. The darkness of his present circumstances makes him doubt even the goodness of God.

 

            What will he do? The psalmist sets his mind to remember. In verse 6, he says that he will remember his song. The psalmist is about to take his memory outside the cloud of his darkness. He is about to turn his mind to a place when it was not clouded by grief but was instead filled with the joyful song of the redeemed.

 

            What does the psalmist think of to bring joy into his mind? He remembers the great deeds of the Lord. He looks back into his memory to again find the joy of the great things that he has seen God do. He remembers the power and mighty acts of the Lord from years gone by. He remembers the perfection and holiness of God. These will bring him hope in the middle of a dark time.

 

            What do you do when you suffer hardship/ What do you do when your mind is clouded with sorrow? How about taking a line from the psalmist? Look back into the past faithfulness of God. What have you seen God do that used to give you joy, that used to make you sing? What events from Scripture remind you most of God’s power, God’s faithfulness, God’s grace, or God’s mercy? Set you mind on the glories of God that are not sullied by the cloud of your despair. Remember your song. Remember your Lord. Find joy in the faithfulness and holiness of God.