We are in September 2022, after three strange and unnerving years. So much has changed in a short span? As a prideful generation, are we being humbled? As a prosperous, haughty generation that is being humbled, can we keep saying, “I shall never be moved?” Verses 6–7: As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.” By your favor, O Lord, you made my mountain stand strong; you hid your face; I was dismayed.
Who would have thought or assumed in our prosperity just a few years/months ago─”We shall never be moved? (The global economy will never tank with such little notice, March Madness will not be canceled, or the NBA season, or MLB, for sure, not the NFL and college football, “We shall never be moved,” A policeman would never put his knee on a man’s neck for eight minutes, while bystanders captured it on video, Riots would never erupt in such peaceful and tolerant cities and damage thousands of buildings and cause more destruction than any other riots since 1992 in Los Angeles. “We……” Surely, our healthcare system, law enforcement, and our economy are the best in the world and will not be challenged to the very core in a matter of weeks. “We..…”
Yet we have been moved!
By God’s favor, our mountain may stand strong, but when he chooses to hide his face, it crumbles overnight. Earthly prosperity is not a sign of God’s eternal favor, nor is poverty a sign of his disfavor. “One question that Psalm 30 raises for us in 2022 is: How should we as Christians think about earthly prosperity? Looking back just a few months, many of us now would say life seemed better, easier, more comfortable and prosperous then.
Health, financial, civic anxieties and full-blown fears have now been felt acutely. Some lived with few changes other than dependency upon others’ health responsibilities. But here in September of 2022, we, with another sense of urgency, are not living in the same felt sense of prosperity and health we took for granted years before 2016. Remember, “Men ought to always pray and not faint or become self-confident.” Let us pay close attention to Psalms of praise when all seems well with the world; Psalms of lament when some danger threatens, the psalmist cries out for mercy or justice; and Psalms of thanks that renew praise to God after He delivers us from the threats. Thank God in particular instances of David’s life, which also reflects on lives today.
We don’t know how literal or figurative it is when David says in verse 2, “You have healed me.” The psalm is meant to stimulate other readers into worship for all sorts of healings and rescues, not just David’s.
O give thanks unto the Lord because He is good!
The Traveler Weekly 