Reflections
Psalm 30: 2, 4, 5-6, 11, 12, 13
“I praise you Lord, for you raised me up; you let me live, kept me from going down to the pit.”God did not make death, nor does He rejoice at the destruction of the living. His “Divine favor lasts a lifetime.”
In the words of our psalmist, we too, by the grace of God, are able to be saved from going down into the pit.
We too are eligible for a spiritual
resurrection if our faith is strong.
We may be rebuked by God for disobeying
Him. We are, after all, His wayward children,
and He loves us as a Father loves his own.
God's compassion and mercy are with us
not only in this life, but in eternity.
“Divine anger lasts but a moment;
divine favor lasts a lifetime.”
Our Lord Jesus himself was raised up
from the pit by the Father, even though
He bore the weight of our sins.
God’s anger lasted but a moment.
The joy of resurrection comes to us at dawn,
after a terrible night, as it came to those
early followers of Jesus. “At nightfall,
weeping enters in, but with the dawn
there is rejoicing.”
And that alone is reason enough
to change our “mourning into dancing,”
to clothe us with gladness. We are
prompted to sing endless praise to the Lord.
“O LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist tells us that God's anger lasts but
a moment, while His favor lasts a lifetime. Tell of how
you have been rebuked by the Lord, and following
repentance, how you have received His grace.
2. The Psalm is about being rescued by the Lord
and how God lifts us out of the pit. Speak of how
you have been saved by the Lord and brought up
from a sinful existence.
"God's anger lasts but a moment, while His favor lasts a lifetime." Anger and love are natural emotions. All of us have them. Shouldn't we all try to be more Godlike, and keep our anger to a moment, and our love of God and our fellow human beings ongoing? Certainly a very worthy focus and goal for each and every one of us.
ReplyDelete-
I was rebuked by God for disobeying him. But by His grace God prevented me from going down into the pit. Yes, His divine favor lasts a lifetime. I was limping around for almost three months because of my left knee problem. The pain did not go away. I took an x-ray. No sign of fracture. I tried every possible way to cure it. Nothing has helped so far. I was so miserable and depressed that I blamed God instead of praising God.
ReplyDeleteYesterday after Mass, without hope, I stopped by the Chapel for a quick prayer. I stood up in front of the Tabernacle. I heard inner voices demanding me to "Kneel down." I obeyed instantly. I didn't feel any pain at all when I knelt down. I was amazed by it. I thought it was a kind of miracle. He truly lifted me up from the pit. I'm confident now God will open my ears in His time so that I can hear as well.