Reflection

Remember why this Psalm was written? It was penned along with fifteen other Psalms for pilgrims travelling to Jerusalem for one of the festivals. No doubt they sang them along the way and definitely when they arrived. This Psalm makes more sense if you remember this fact.

The topography of Jerusalem must have inspired this Psalm. The city sitting on a mountain surrounded by mountains provides the perfect backdrop for this Psalm.

After a long and quite dangerous journey, you can imagine these pilgrims stopping as they approached the city and looking at the mountains. You can hear the collective sigh of relief that they have completed the journey.

None are exempt from challenges in life. These challenges should never be rated on a scale from one to ten; one gets cheers if you endure a ‘ten’ and nothing when facing a ‘one.’ Challenges are subjective – God certainly doesn’t rate them like we tend to do. What God does is exactly what the psalmist says he will do. He surrounds us. Is there a more comforting feeling than God surrounding us? The mountains surrounding Jerusalem must have been a comforting sight for those pilgrims. It must have reminded them of how God has surrounded them along their challenging journey.

The most comforting feeling for someone facing a challenge is that God surrounds them with his love, grace, mercy and peace. There can be no greater feeling.

Prayer

Lord God, thank you for surrounding me when facing the challenges of life. To sense your everlasting arms surrounding me is the most cherished thought I have. Your love soothes my troubled soul; your mercy lifts me to heights when I cannot raise myself. Your strength gives me the courage to face what lies ahead, and your peace helps me rest in the security of trust. Lord my God, you are everything to me – my hope, my safe place, my protector and my strength. You are all I need.