Psalm 126 – Feeling Like a Dream
It can be tempting to think that God hardly moves or acts when we want him to. We feel like our days are dragging on, or we are going through a rough path and feel like God has forgotten us. However the surprising thing is, when God does work, we can hardly believe it. From psalm 126, the people of Israel felt the same way.
At this point in Israel’s history, they appear to be either in captivity or on their way out of it. Weighed down by the weight of God’s Judgement, they must have felt in a state where God has completely rejected them. It’s as if they have lost his presence and mercy. Yet when God moves and brings deliverance, they feel like they are lost in a dream. A hopeful fantasy which couldn’t possibly be real.(vs1)
Upon recognising the unmistakable hand of God in their circumstances, they rejoice. They find comfort in the reality that God is here, he came back to redeem and rescued them from bondage. They have a new reason to laugh, sing and smile as God is at hand. What’s interesting is that their joy is a witness to those who don’t believe in God. (vs2) It’s clear to the unbeliever that God has done great things for his people, all they can do is marvel at his divine acts.
As people living in a fallen world, its easy to think that God has been distant from us. We see the troubles of our community, country and wider world and ask “O God, where are you?”, “Why is this happening?” or even “Why Me?”. Yet in the midst of hopelessness the christian needs to remember that God has done great things for us. He won’t abandon or forsake us. The salvation he has made through Christ never loses its power or effectiveness.
The psalmist finds courage to ask God to continue to work in their lives and overturn their current distress. (vs4) They speak of sowing and reaping. Those who feel downcast yet sow seeds of faith into the ground, shall reap a harvest of Joy. The seed is clearly the gospel truth. The one who bears that precious truth in their heart and sows it in fields of hope and anticipation, shall see the vindication of their faith. God will come and act on their behalf. The Lord loves his church and longs for her to grow in faith and maturity. As stated elsewhere in another psalm, “Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning”.(Psalm 30:5).
Our Lord Jesus himself sowed in tears, in the gethsemane garden he prays for relief from the path of the cross. And when he is on the cross he also cries out “My God, My God, Why have you forsaken me”. After such a painful night, it may have looked hopeless for Christ’s followers, yet on Easter morning, His people find Him standing alive and firm. He draws close to reassure and comfort his followers. He restores Peter who had previously denied him, and then he rises into the heavens promising to send his Holy Spirit who will sow seeds of faith in their hearts.
For those who hope in Christ, for the christians who feel life pressure, yet carry the precious seed of the Gospel, there will be a great turning from sorrow to true joy. There is a day coming when the trials of life will seem like a bad dream. Darkness will be chased away by the light of grace. Peace and Joy shall Reign endlessly
-Henry Onwordi