In Proverbs 6, Solomon encouraged his son to consider the ways of the ant. I’d like to similarly challenge you. “Go to the stream; consider its ways, and be wise.”
Picture a gently rolling stream in your mind. Can you hear it rippling? Can you imagine the light dancing on the surface of the moving water? The next time you have a few moments to sit beside such a stream, leave your phone in your pocket and just watch. Listen. Soak it all in. Notice how the ever-flowing water orients around the big rock in the middle of the stream, and think about the everyday currents of your life.
Think about your rhythms and responsibilities. Your obligations and opportunities. Your patterns and potential. Day by day, what is being carried along by the momentum of your life? If you’re like me, it’s all-too-easy to go with the flow of shallow curiosities, mindless distractions, incessant notifications, inconvenient interruptions, and self-centered motivations. Before I know it, my day, my week, my month has floated by, and how have I spent it? What have I accomplished? What difference have I made? In what shallows did I get hung up while the most important opportunities drifted by?
If that sounds familiar and is hitting pretty close to home in this season of life, maybe the first five verses of Psalm 105 are exactly what you need to hear today. Envision them as a giant rock in the middle of that stream around which everything else was meant to flow.
Oh give thanks to the LORD; call upon his name;
make known his deeds among the peoples!
Sing to him, sing praises to him;
tell of all his wondrous works!
Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice!
Seek the LORD and his strength;
seek his presence continually!
Remember the wondrous works that he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he uttered…
There are many things upstream that you can’t control, plenty of responsibilities that require something of you today, and an untold number of downstream possibilities. But what if Psalm 105 was the rock in the middle of the stream around which everything else flowed? What difference would that make? What perspective would it lend? What peace could finally be experienced?
Give thanks to the LORD. Take the time, every day, to say “Thank you” to the Giver of every good and perfect gift.
Call upon his name. His hand is mighty. Humble yourself beneath it, casting all your anxieties on him. He cares for you.
Make known his deeds among the peoples. More than mathematics, chemistry, or a foreign language, the generations behind you need to be taught the glorious deeds of the LORD, his might, and the wonders that he has done.
Sing praises to him. Make worship a priority. Treat Sunday as the best day of the week, orienting everything else around the Lord. Take advantage of opportunities to study his word with fellow disciples. Day by day, offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
Tell of all his wondrous works. All around us, the fields are white for harvest. Who is the next person I can tell about the Rock of my heart and what he’s done for me?
Glory in his holy name. It’s not about me; it’s all about him.
Let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. We are his and he is ours.
Seek the LORD. Above and beyond status and accomplishments and riches, what matters most is understanding and knowing my Creator.
Seek the LORD’s strength. He has provided the armor we need to stand against the schemes of the devil. Let’s put it on and stand strong in the strength of his might.
Seek the LORD’s presence continually. O God, you are my God. Earnestly I seek you. My soul thirsts for you because I believe your steadfast love is better than life.
Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered. That’s the call of Psalm 105–to recognize that the God who provided manna in the wilderness and made water to gush out of desert rocks has promised his children, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” The LORD remembered his holy promises. Psalm 105 rehearses Israel’s story in a string of powerful verbs. The LORD remembered. Rebuked. Allowed. Summoned. Broke. Sent. Tested. Made. Turned. Chose. Caused. Spoke. Gave. Struck. Shattered. Brought. Spread. Opened. And Psalm 105 continues to call people of all generations to remember…
…that they might keep his statutes
and observe his laws.
Praise the LORD! (105:45)
As life continues to flow and the hustle and bustle of the everyday easily carries us along much more quickly than we’d sometimes like to acknowledge, Psalm 105 is an enduring reminder.
Give thanks. Make known. Sing. Tell. Glory. Rejoice. Seek. Remember.
The LORD is the Rock around whom all other things were meant to flow.