Psalm 85

1 Lord, you poured out blessings on your land! You restored the fortunes of Israel.
2 You forgave the guilt of your people— yes, you covered all their sins.
Interlude

3 You held back your fury. You kept back your blazing anger.
4 Now restore us again, O God of our salvation. Put aside your anger against us once more.
5 Will you be angry with us always? Will you prolong your wrath to all generations?
6 Won’t you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you?
7 Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.
8 I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying, for he speaks peace to his faithful people. But let them not return to their foolish ways.
9 Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, so our land will be filled with his glory.
10 Unfailing love and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed!
11 Truth springs up from the earth, and righteousness smiles down from heaven.
12 Yes, the Lord pours down his blessings. Our land will yield its bountiful harvest.
13 Righteousness goes as a herald before him, preparing the way for his steps.
"Again, grandpa!"

I was spinning Luca around and he was giggling uncontrollably. As I begin to get dizzy I stopped. We've all heard it before..."do it again, grandpa!" There's no such thing as "enough" for kids.

Today's psalm is generally thought to have been composed after the return of the Jews from their captivity in Babylon; yet there is also belief that it is intended to foreshadow redemption by Christ and speaks of his dwelling in the land. It's a psalm that longingly looks back at the immeasurable grace of God in Israel's past and longs to experience it again.

"One more time, God!" In fact, that's exactly what the psalmist says..."Now restore us again, O God of our salvation."

So we have a situation where God loves...and has chosen...Israel. He cared for her, comforted her and protected her. It was a perfect relationship, but things went sour. Israel lost interest in God and walked her own path of sin and disobedience. Finally God had enough and removed His protective presence. Before long, Israel was carted of (729BC) and Judah followed close behind (586BC).

Ya think they noticed God was missing? You bet!

Their memory improved. "Lord, you poured out blessings on your land! You restored the fortunes of Israel. You forgave the guilt of your people— yes, you covered all their sins." A striking comparison to life in Babylon.

"Do it again Lord" "Won’t you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you?"We occasionally hit "dry spots" in our lives. The cumulative effects of careless living pile up and we feel deserted and desperate. Our lives begin to spin out of control and we wonder if we can regain our spiritual equilibrium. We recognize our condition primarily because it doesn't resemble the confidence we are used to having when God is near. It's frightening. Particularly when we begin to wonder if God is gone forever.

And like my grandson Luca, we plead with God and cry "do it again!"

I have very good news for you, He will. "Yes, the Lord pours down his blessings. Our land will yield its bountiful harvest."

Live boldly out there today...