Selah
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Psalm 68:19
Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God [who] is our salvation. Selah.
Do you think of God as one who daily bears your burden? Somehow that seems almost like it diminishes God’s to think of him as a beast of burden, doesn’t it? This the first time I can remember finding a passage in the Old Testament that refers to God in quite this way. Or perhaps it’s just the first time I’ve interpreted a passage in this manner.
Maybe it’s the poet in me, but the whole scene appears in my mind’s eye: Jesus riding in to town on the back of donkey—a beast of burden. . . He is being hailed as a King – but not a Savior – not yet. They didn’t understand; they limited Jesus to their own perception and vision of a Savior. They made their own interpretation of what they needed at that point in time. God had a better plan. But they were too caught up in the moment to see it.
The meaning of the word Selah is unclear even to biblical scholars. It is translated both as “silence” or “pause;” and “a louder strain.” So, we are instructed to pause and reflect upon the God who is strong enough to bear not only my burdens but your burdens and the burdens of the world—The God who is our salvation. Our other option is to shout this phrase from the rooftops!
Perhaps both are appropriate. After reflecting upon God’s all surpassing capacity to support and uplift us, we are inclined to declare that He is our salvation – and to do so loudly and with great excitement! Why wouldn’t we make such a declaration to a hurting world!?
Another thought occurs to me: God’s intention is that He be the burden-bearer. That means we are to give Him our burdens and not keep them, hug them tightly to ourselves, become slaves to them. He wants us to hand over our burdens to Him so we can be free to fully and with great joy worship Him—the God of our salvation.
Wow! That makes sense. In The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren explains that our whole purpose, our reason for existing, is to worship God. We can’t do that if we are enslaved by burdens that preoccupy and distract us from God. God wants us to focus only on Him and His greatness, His glory, His vastness and His ability and desire to bear our burdens. The God who made the earth with a mere wave of His hand, wants to serve us as a slave.
Selah. Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God [who] is our salvation!
Sometimes we forget about the personal aspects of God’s relationship with us. We think of our relationship with God on that level, but often not in reverse. We forget that God is our God, my God. We focus on what we want, we ask God for things we think we need. We limit God when we do that. God who is my personal God wants to give me abundance, blessings and eternal life. We ask for crumbs and He wants to give us the whole cake. We ask for sip, he want to fill our cup to overflowing.
Selah. Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God [who] is our salvation! My prayer today is that you offer up your burdens to the God of our salvation. And that you allow God to give you the abundant blessings He has stored up for you.
Mary
Labels: abundance, blessing, burden, salvation
