Evidence of Perception

"[Yet] the LORD will command his lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night his song [shall be] with me, [and] my prayer unto the God of my life.” (Ps 42:8 AV)

There are two points which stuck out at me.  The first being the song.  The song is singular, so it puzzled me.  If it was plural, it would make more sense.  If ‘song’ were ‘songs’, then I could equate it with all of scripture.  Yet, the word ‘song’ is singular.  So, being the pragmatist that I am, I wondered exactly what that ‘song’ might be and if I could memorize it, sing it, and be encouraged by it.  I thought that if I could identify that one song, then I could fall asleep with that tune in my mind and heart.  However, the song in singular because the subject of the song is singular.  His song is the song about Him and only Him.  It could be any song.  It could be How Great Thou Art, or Amazing Grace.  Any song that praises God for who and what He is would be His song, because it is about Him.  The second point can be found in the last four words of our verse.  There really is only one question to be asked here.  Who or what is the god of our life?  Is Jehovah God our God?  Or, is something else our God?  Our prayer is we can agree with our whole heart that God is the God of our life.  Maybe the song we sing or the manner and matter of what we pray indicates just who or what our God is.

I love the assurance this writer has that no matter what a day might bring, God’s lovingkindness will be a big part of it. Notice also it isn’t a onetime command.  It is an ongoing command.  Otherwise, His lovingkindness would be commanded in the morning.  Note it is commanded in the daytime.  Or, thinking of it another way, all our waking moments.  God’s lovingkindness is active and always present.  Our problem is one of perception.  We cannot see the lovingkindness of God because we are either overwhelmed by life, or because we chose to wear dark-colored glasses.  We are either a pessimist, or we lack the faith required to see reality as God sees it.  If the lovingkindness of God is commanded in the daytime, it includes all the day.  Not only when we think we need it the most.  It astounds me just how spiritually stunted God’s people can be.  We say we have faith.  In reality, we have very little of it.  We are tossed to and fro because we refuse to take God at His word.  Peter tells us God has given all things that pertain to LIFE and godliness.  We have all we need.  There is no more truth or revelation that will come if we pray hard enough.  It is all there.  God’s word has all the answers we will ever need.  We simply have to believe it.

So, if the LORD has said His lovingkindness is constant and active every moment our eyes are open, then that is reality.  Our perception of it doesn’t determine the reality of it.  We may be overwhelmed by the circumstances of life.  We may be beaten down by the opposition.  We may feel like a lint ball in a dryer.  But that doesn’t change what is.  Either God is good or He isn’t.  Either God exists or He doesn’t.  Either we are hopelessly cursed because God cannot, or will not, act on our behalf.  Or, God is a God of love and goodness.  All things work together for the good of those who love Him.  That is either true or false.  Either the word of God is true, or it is false.  It cannot be half one or half the other.  The writer can have a song of praise regarding God and prayer on his lips because he believes in, and sees, the lovingkindness of God.  If one or both are missing as we fall into sleep, then the fault lies in our blind eyes.  We cannot praise and pray because we refuse to see God’s lovingkindness that surrounds us every waking moment of our day.