“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever,
to him who alone does great wonders,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his steadfast love endures forever.”
Psalm 136:1, 4, 26
I have found that oftentimes the Lord will draw us out into seasons of rest to slow down and to be still with the Lord. We like to call it “the wilderness season” or “the waiting season.” I tend to get restless and anxious because as a society, we have glorified productivity and overworking that we do not know how to slow down nor do we want to slow down because it feels counterintuitive.
Psalm 136 is unique in that a phrase gets repeated in every single verse for a total of 26 times: “His steadfast love endures forever.” I used to read this Psalm and get so impatient because I often felt like the repeated phrase was getting in the way of me reading the events of the story. That was until I realized that this “interruptive phrase” actually served as a spiritual speed bump and a selah moment for us to pause and reflect on what it looks like to keep the unwavering, relentless love of God in the front and center of our story. It reminds us that from the very beginning, through sin and suffering, good and bad, in every season, the steadfast love of God never changes, and it endures forever.
Like a loving parent, God sees these slower seasons as a time for us to reset our focus, reclaim our identity and rest in His love. God cares infinitely more about who we are becoming than what we will ever do for Him. It is an act of His lovingkindness that He puts a brief pause to our activities and invites us to rest and reflect. It's as if slowing down in the Kingdom somehow gets us to our destination faster because we are not moving in our own strength but we are moving at the pace of His grace.
When life gets the better of me and waiting seasons seem to last forever, this Psalm invites me to pause, to recall the goodness of God and to find my resting place in His faithful love that never ends no matter what. You can rest today, knowing that where you are at right now is not forever; it is a season and seasons change in due time, in His perfect timing.
Sneha Joseph
Father, I am sorry for when I have tried to move faster and go ahead of you instead of waiting and resting in your faithful love and your abounding grace. Please show me what I am supposed to carry in every season and what I am supposed to lay down as I learn to rest in your love.
