11 I shall remember the deeds of [i]the Lord;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
12 I will meditate on all Your work
And muse on Your deeds.
13 Your way, O God, is holy;
What god is great like our God?
14 You are the God who works wonders;
You have made known Your strength among the peoples.
15 You have by Your [j]power redeemed Your people,
The sons of Jacob and Joseph. Selah.16 The waters saw You, O God;
The waters saw You, they were in anguish;
The deeps also trembled.
17 The clouds poured out water;
The skies gave forth a sound;
Your arrows [k]flashed here and there.
18 The sound of Your thunder was in the whirlwind;
The lightnings lit up the world;
The earth trembled and shook.
19 Your way was in the sea
And Your paths in the mighty waters,
And Your footprints may not be known.
20 You led Your people like a flock
By the hand of Moses and Aaron.
For more context, read the first part of this psalm. Short version, the psalmist was in distress, he was crying out to God continually, and it felt like God had abandoned him forever. I emphasized the importance of community, but yet we don’t rely solely on other people, no matter how great they are. Ultimately, we may have to turn around and fix our gaze… on the past.
That is, we need to remember the things God has done, both in the Bible and in our own lives. When hope seems far away, look to the amazing miracles God has accomplished. The psalmist does just that in the second half of the psalm, recounting of creation, and the flood, the parting (and crossing) of the Red Sea and later the Jordan River.
God led his people out of bondage and into the Promised Land by amazing deeds and mighty miracles. Imagine the water piled stories high as God made a path, or more accurately, a massive gap in the waters as millions of people walked across the (dry) sea bed. Yet that cost God little, a flick of the wrist perhaps, and it was done.
Rescuing my soul and your soul from the bondage of our sin? That cost him everything. That brought God low, even to the depths of hell and death, to bring salvation to us. He sacrificed his own Son on the cross, his only son, in whom he was “well pleased”, for you, and for me. There is no greater miracle, and no miracle ever cost God more than that magnificent act of love and grace.
We may still go through the “wringer”, but we need to be reminded of what Jesus went through for us. He knows our pain, our sorrow, our suffering, He is God with us, Emmanuel. It doesn’t eliminate our heartache, but it makes it worth bearing for the sake of knowing Him.