It’s the centerpiece of the sacred and joyous celebration of Christmas. It was a first. No other god had ever done it. No other god could have conceived it. It was an offence, a scandal, a puzzle. The Greeks mocked it. The Jews rejected it. The Bible prophesied it and then proclaimed it. Without it, Christianity wouldn’t even be a very good story, to say nothing of The Greatest Story Ever Told.

The happy music and conversation in the background was oblivious to the painful desperation of one man. He sat alone at the bar. He raised his hands to his anguished and weary face. Tears filled his eyes. He bowed his head and with a whispering intensity, struggled through a simple, heartfelt prayer. “Dear Father in heaven. I’m not a praying man, but if you’re up there and you can hear me, show me the way. I’m at the end of my rope. Show me the way God.”

In the stillness of the night, darkness, like a heavy shroud, hung upon the world. A mournful despair held the nations in its grip. How long? How long would God’s people have to wait? At the appointed time, a shaft of light split the darkness. Mourning would turn to joy; despair would turn to hope… “A light has dawned.”

Throughout the Scriptures we see different times that God appointed for His people to come together. One such time for the nation of Israel was the Feast of Tabernacles. It was an annual feast when the people would praise God and remember His faithfulness and care for them during their time in the wilderness.

In Psalm 80, we can see the psalmist (Asaph) speaking on behalf of a community (the people of Israel) and asking God to intervene and save them/rescue them from their troubles. I think we could accurately call this a “corporate lament”.

Have you ever felt like you couldn’t take it anymore? That your suffering was too great to bear? Have you ever been broken hearted because the wicked were triumphing over God’s people? Asaph felt that way. He wrote Psalm 79 from a place of great despair, during the time of Israel’s exile in Babylon; from a place of unspeakable pain, he pleaded with God. Asaph addressed God humbly and honestly, and he gave us a model of prayer for when we are in distress.

This psalm shows that though we have experienced trouble followed by victories in the past, we are easily discouraged whenever the next challenge arrives on the scene. As the children of Israel did in the wilderness, the soul and the flesh are ever ready to forget God’s continuous flow of victories and provision.

Psalm 76 begins with declarations of honor to the name of the Lord. In this Psalm, God’s name is lifted high. His mighty acts, on behalf of His people and righteous nations that honor Him, are extolled.

It was a cool, overcast day in the city. The crowds were large and restless. People were taken by a great sense of despair and desperation. Many were hurting. They were discouraged. Still, they managed some hopeful anticipation on this important occasion. Maybe this really would be better. They steeled themselves against an unfounded optimism. They had been disappointed before. Millions had given up hope.

There was no caveat, or condition, or middle ground. There was no room permitted for compromise, accommodation, or splitting the difference. Sometimes, under certain circumstances, there can be give and take. That was not the case here.

“Christian Nationalism” is a pejorative that secularists (those that do not hold to a Biblical worldview) use to impugn the motives and actions of Christians who engage the culture and the government. Look no further than Wikipedia to find the lengths to which they will go to malign sincere Christians.

Psalm 75 is a song of thanksgiving. The Psalmist gives thanks for deliverance from the troubles of Psalm 74. This is a Psalm of faith because it anticipates a miraculous deliverance in the future. As one reads this Psalm, it seems to anticipate the events of the end times. In this Psalm we see parallels to the prophecies of Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation.

That is why even a Psalm that is hard to understand and get our heads wrapped around about sea monsters and the destruction of a temple can speak to us today.

God is the same God who we can plead with, and He will NOT leave us.

Psalm 71 starts off as a cry for help. The author was an older man who went through his own set of challenges, like we all do, and he cried out to the Lord.

We can relate to this aged man, whether it is a personal trial, at work, in our family, or maybe it is a cry for help in our nation. It’s clear - our nation is under judgement, but there are signs of good things that are happening.

When we see things through our fleshly eyes we often can’t see the forest for the trees. We only see what we can see. But when we look through our spiritual eyes with the spiritual truth God has given us in His Word, our eyes are opened and we see things from God’s perspective. God’s perspective is the only one that counts!

Praying for our leaders is something we all should do, and it is incredibly important because if our leaders and government go off track, it becomes more and more difficult to “lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.” (I Timothy 2:2)

There are days and weeks when attacks are thick and the pains are deep. I have been going through one of those seasons. There are sufferings that we choose – inconveniencing ourselves for the gospel, to disciple someone, giving up resources till it hurts for the Kingdom – and then there are times where we go through sufferings that we didn’t choose.

When life overwhelms you,  it’s normal to look for comfort. As Christians, we should  search in two places: God’s presence and God’s word. Trials will require you to shift your focus. Instead of looking all around you, or living in fear of your circumstances, you can look to the God who holds you. That begins with recognizing who God is.

The Psalmist opens with declaration (praise) of God’s might against the enemies of Israel, as easily defeated as wisps of smoke or melting wax, illustrating the commanding power of the God of Israel. 

These verses tell us about God, and what he does for His people. See that those who are not believers “shall flee before Him!” implying their terror at the might of God…God is our help, that every day He helps us carry our burdens. His strength, His help for us, is new each day. He is our salvation. Blessed be the Lord who daily bears us up, God is our salvation. Selah

When we are blessed by the Lord, as commanded by Him, when we receive His blessing, His word, His promises, when we practice praise and the Lord Himself is our ruler, then the earth shall yield her increase and our own God shall bless us.