Psalm 121 - When Moving Forward has Me Looking Back

Summer in the Psalms

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When we read God's Word, we're not alone. The Holy Spirit is with us and leading us, making this truth come to life to us in new and exciting ways. The Bible is the only book which reads us as we read it.

I love this reflection of Psalm 121 from my good friend, Amy Lively, as it illustrates this so beautifully.

God led her to read this psalm while resting on a height, and deep insight gushed forth. Insight for her life, but also for ours, because God is cool like that. I hope this reflection is as timely for you as it has been for me.

Amy Lively is an author and speaker who teaches God’s Word as a “how-to” manual for loving him and loving others. Her most recent book, Can I Borrow a Cup of Hope? How to Find Faith for Hard Times in 1 Peter, shows how God transforms pain and suffering into hope and purpose. She is also the author of How to Love Your Neighbor Without Being Weird. Amy is a student at Asbury Theological Seminary, a business owner, community organizer, and active church member and small group leader. She has been married to David for 35 years! They have one grown daughter and divide their time between Colorado and Florida. Visit her online at www.amylively.com. 

I just so happened to be sitting at the base of a cliff when I read Psalm 121. It begins—

I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. - Psalm 121:1-2

Not only was I in the perfect place to read this—surrounded by snowcapped peaks over 14,000 feet tall—but I also needed some serious help. Later that day, my husband I would drive to Denver to move our newlywed daughter and son-in-law across the country. Months earlier, I’d waved goodbye to my parents moving away. Even the "For Sale" sign in my own yard foretold yet another move.

From the foot of the mountain, I was looking back, not up.

Back at holidays that would never be the same. Back at parents I couldn’t just drop in to visit. Back at the valley we were torn about leaving.

Psalm 121 is called a Psalm of Ascent. These fifteen psalms (numbered 120 through 134) were sung by the Israelites as they pilgrimaged to Jerusalem several times a year—an uphill climb no matter where they started from. They may have also been sung on the fifteen steps leading up to the temple. We can use them today as life progresses upward from faith to faith.

When this journey becomes wearisome, God comes to help. The Hebrew word used in this chapter for help is ezer—the same word used to describe the woman in Genesis 2:18. Ezer is a strong ally or deliverer, and it’s most often used to describe God Himself as Israel’s helper (and ours!) who brings assistance and support in times of hardship and distress.

Six times in eight verses, Psalm 121 promises over and over that God is watching over you. As verse three says, He will not allow your foot to slip on this treacherous climb! He is never inactive or inattentive. Verse four tells us that He never sleeps on the job, his eyes never close! Come to think of it, I can’t sleep either when I’m busy watching and worrying over myself. You can rest easy knowing God is on the job.

In verse five, God is still watching as He is described as your shade at your right hand. Shade is protection and defense, and to be at your right hand puts God in the most ready position when you need him most. He keeps you safe night and day, 24/7!

There is not one detail of your life that God is not watching over. Verse seven promises that he will keep your very soul from all harm! You don’t need me to tell you that this doesn’t mean life is not devastatingly difficult or painful. But it does mean that evil has no hold over you. Christ has swallowed up death in victory (1 Corinthians 15:54), and He has triumphed over every harmful power and evil adversary by the cross (Colossians 2:15).

But it was verse eight that brought me to my knees that morning on the mountain, in a year that had taken my breath away with a whirlwind of unwelcome change. It says—

The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. - Psalm 121:8

Every coming to a new place is a going from a familiar place. Maybe you are stepping into an exciting season like my newlywed daughter and new son or my adventuresome parents. Or maybe you are like me, waiting in an uncertain place while knowing that change is right around the corner. Or maybe you wish life would change from the darkness around you into a brighter future. God has already seen what you will face, He is prepared for every possibility.

He made your mountains, and He will move them in His time.

Now, It's Your Turn!

I challenge you to take a moment to pray, then read or listen to Psalm 121 today. Think about what stands out to you. Consider writing down a statement of faith. It may help to think of this as an I-statement. Maybe yours is similar to Amy's:

When I feel the whirlwind of unwelcome change, I will remember: God has already seen what I will face; He is prepared for every possibility.

Then, jot down a question to think about today. Maybe yours is similar to Amy's:

Am I looking back or up?

May this reflection lead our hearts to gratitude and praise today and may we stand in victory against the tactics and schemes of the enemy.

And praise God for refreshment as we are intentional to spend a summer in the Psalms together, for if we want His truth to ever be on our lips, it must first be planted in our hearts.

Our strength grows as we rely on strength from above. Our joy grows as we see God transforming us from the inside out. Our peace grows as we spend time in God's presence, and we find rest when we intentionally seek the Lord first in our lives, for the Lord is ever our portion.

The good life, well it starts with a good day. Then another. Then another. Let's choose to live #TheGoodDay one day at a time.