Before You had formed the earth... - December 1st, 2011

¹ Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. 

² Before the mountains were brought forth,

Or ever You had formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. 

Psalm 90:1-2

History and Context:

The Psalms are a collection of old hymns which the Jews used to bring praise and worship to Yahweh. Most of them were written by King David, but there were also other contributors and a few have unknown authors. This particular psalm is the oldest of all the psalms having been written by Moses, the leader of Israel's exodus out of Egypt.

The Text:

Psalm 90 was written by Moses as a psalm of awe and reverence at the power and 'wrath' of God. Moses clearly understood the power of God and what it meant to fear Him in reverence and awe. To start the psalm out Moses reminds His readers that the Lord has been around longer than anything on this earth. He was the one that formed the mountains and the earth and was around long before they were formed. Moses also declares that the Lord has been their dwelling place. They have dwelt in the Lord and lived in His presence.

The Challenge:

Often we, humans, have a tendency to think that the Lord doesn't understand us or our situation. At least we tend to act as if we think that way. But this simple statement shows us how much He does understand. The Lord has been around, not only much longer than us, but much longer than anything we ever have known. He has been a part of the experiences of every human being in the history of the world, and as Ecclesiastes shares with us "there is nothing new under the sun." Make the Lord your dwelling place and hear from Him. No one understands your situation better than Him, not even yourself.

The Prayer:

Lord, I trust you and your understanding of my situation. Lead me as to what I should do and where I should go. Help me to simply dwell in you, in your presence. In Jesus' name, Amen!