Who Holds our Souls?

It is a remarkable thing that the book of worship that came to Christians in England in the sixteenth century, came with the entire set of the Psalms from the Old Testament in it. Our Book of Common Prayer in its current form still has them all: 150 Psalms. These songs from the ancient worship of the covenantal people of Israel adorn virtually every service of worship we have. They represent so many human emotions and experiences.

When we gather Sunday, we will share in a psalm that praises God and calls on the people to recognize God’s might, and kindness. It is an invitation for the people to be joyful because God is so awesome and wonderful. This serves as a corrective to the way the experience of life pulls us down. We all know how circumstances, personal hardships, and strife drag us into discouragement. A song of praise like this gives us the chance to recognize divine goodness as central, even when God has seemed hidden from us. When the psalms speak of the “lands” it means all the various peoples, the nations of the earth. Read through the eight verses of Psalm 66:

1          Be joyful in God, all you lands; *
sing the glory of his Name; sing the glory of his praise.

2          Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds! *
because of your great strength, your enemies cringe before you.

3          All the earth bows down before you, *
            sings to you, sings out your Name."

4          Come now and see the works of God, *
how wonderful he is in his doing toward all people.

5          He turned the sea into dry land,
   so that they went through the water on foot, *
and there we rejoiced in him.

6          In his might he rules for ever;
   his eyes keep watch over the nations; *
let no rebel rise up against him.

7          Bless our God, you peoples; *
make the voice of his praise to be heard;

8          Who holds our souls in life, *
and will not allow our feet to slip.

It is a balm for the soul, this psalm. It is a correction for a strained disposition. If life has seemed out of control, if discouragement has overtaken us, we convince one another to look to God, mighty to heal and protect. Review the last and the first couplets. God is the one who holds our souls in life and helps us not to slip; it is time to sing the glory of God’s praise, the glory of God’s Name. We have reason to be joyful in God.