Psalm 103:1-5  “Bless the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name. Praise the Lord, O my soul and forget not all His benefits – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

I’m in awe of the picture that these words create as I pause to reflect on this lovely passage from God’s word.

On the one hand we have the things that God’s mercy delivers.

We experience a lot of stress and anxiety because of things we believe we ought to do or should have done but haven’t. Here, God informs us that everything is forgiven, including our sins of omission – the things we have neglected to do. The slate has been completely cleared of all “shoulds” from the past and present. Instead of feeling guilty about the “shoulds” we impose on ourselves, we are free to heed what He calls us to do and who He calls us to be on a daily basis.

We can bring Jesus all the things that harm our bodies and souls. A large portion of what we let erode our minds and steal our peace also erodes our bodies. He encourages us to release our thoughts and feelings to Him, which in turn promotes the wellbeing of both our bodies and minds.

Jesus is there to calm our souls when discouragement, rejection, disappointment or anything else that taints the Light of Jesus and threatens to drag us into the pit. He draws us towards the Light again. He rescues our lives and delivers us from the pit of evil.

He pulls us to Himself so that He can purge, heal, and deliver us.

On the other hand, He also serves as a reminder of the things that He renews and replenishes in our lives.

He has crowned us with His unfailing affection and compassion. He is loyal, and we are embraced by His faithfulness. He will give us the ability to push back against the condemnation, the should and oughts of life and embrace His empowering presence.

He instills positive desires in our minds, and then He Himself satisfies those desires. We can expect with assurance that as He renews our lives, God will create beauty from ashes and offer joy in place of mourning.

Our desires change, and He gives us new satisfaction in life as He frees us from the things that hold us back and guides us to concentrate on His great love and kindness. He gives us the ability to soar like eagles, which infuses us with power and gives us a youthful confidence.

What a lovely word image of God’s intervention in our lives – first rescuing and redeeming us, then giving us fresh motivation and energy to fly.

Pause, ponder, receive and worship your God!