All-Round!

All-Round!

From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same The LORD's name is to be praised. Psalm 113:3 KJV

Context and Charge:

Science has since laid it out that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. Also, a compass will confirm as best as it can the direction is, making it easy to determine North, South, East and West. Now, this is where it gets interesting; it is only east from the exact point you are standing to check. If you take a few steps away, or change location, you have to confirm where you are. If the natural can be this complex, imagine the impact in the spiritual. The man in Canada has a different idea of the east from the man who is in Cambodia.

That gives me a small view into the power and mercy of God. He owns the earth, yet His power is so mighty that He can give different experiences to different people at different times on the same earth. As the sun rises in a particular city, it is setting in another city. As some go to bed in one city, some are rising up to a new day in another. This is a raw testament to power. Is this a God that men have to beg me to fear, praise, worship and adore? Is this a God of absolute power that I would then dare to treat with disdain and contempt? 

Conviction and Conclusion:

The writer of this psalm had experienced this God on a personal level, so knew how to proceed with the relationship. Too many times, familiarity with the tokens of the church build up assumptions in us. We think we know God well, and can predict his moves. We think we can figure out where he is headed and can help him out in his work using our own intellect, labour and strength. With God, these things don't work, unless they are placed at his disposal and used as He directs. It matters in whose hands that thing is, and who directs its impact.

Knowing who this God is then leads to the final part: the Lord’s name is to be praised. A personal experience of God must lead me to a visible, audible and personal expression of gratitude for who God is and what He has done. It also means that as long as the earth remains, I can never stop praising God. As one man raises praise in the east, another is raising up praise in the west. I get to pick the name of the Lord that addresses my present need. I get to do this over and over again, for as long as I live. Do the points above in any way describe me? God's time of favour is here.