Swamped by circumstances?

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Psalm 77:1-20

TO CHEW ON: "And I said, 'This is my anguish; But I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High'" Psalm 77:10

Asaph, the writer of this psalm, is in distress. He can't sleep. Words fail him. He feels forgotten and neglected. The tap of God's favor has been turned off.

Then Asaph turns himself around. "This is my anguish," he declares. "But…" How does he do it? His method has to do with two thought patterns and two actions.

"I will remember…" (Psalm 77:10,11). He will recall the times of God's favor, His word, His works, His wonders, the evidences of His presence, no doubt in nature and life.

"I will also meditate on all Your work" (Psalm 77:12). To meditate is to continuously direct the mind along a certain course. He will direct his thoughts towards God's actions and accomplishments.

"And talk of Your deeds" (Psalm 77:12). He will express those remembrances and meditations, further cementing their reality, their importance, their superiority over the bad things he has been dwelling on.

"Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary" (Psalm 77:13). He will seek God's company and the company of other believers by going back to God's house where the focus is on "the God who does wonders…" (Psalm 77:14-20).

Could we do the same things when life's pressures pummel us and the clouds of circumstances block out His presence?

• Remember the good times, God's goodness, His works in nature, His wonders in history and in our lives.

• Meditate on all His work. We can think about God's work in our lives, in creation, in history, and in redemption. The verses we have memorized will come in handy here. Recalling and repeating them will wear wholesome paths in our brains—paths to purity (Psalm 119:11); truth (Psalm 119:29); what is of value (Psalm 119:36-37); song (Psalm 119:54); wisdom (Psalm 119:66); the right course to take (Psalm 119:105); light (Psalm 119:149) etc. (Read all of Psalm 119 to find more benefits of meditating on the Word).

• Talk of God's ways. Commit to them in speech.

• Go to the sanctuary. Seek out the company of other believers where we will find moral and spiritual agreement and support.

PRAYER: Dear God, it's easy to let circumstances swamp me. When it feels like that's happening, help me to recall and do these things. Amen.

MORE: Mental inventory

"You should take inventory on a regular basis and ask yourself, 'What have I been thinking about?' Spend some time examining your thought life.

Thinking about what you're thinking about is very valuable because Satan usually deceives people into thinking that the source of their misery or trouble is something other than what it really is. He wants them to think they are unhappy due to what is going on around them (their circumstances), but the misery is actually due to what is going on inside them (their thoughts)" - Joyce Meyer, Battlefield of the Mind, p. 61.

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The Holy Bible, New King James Version Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. - Used with permission.