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Daily Worship

July 7 | Psalm 145


DAILY READING


REFLECTION

 

All People, Every Living Thing

By Dave Mann


The Psalms (and all of the 66 books of the Bible) not only give us the truth of the message of God, but they also are works of literature, particularly when understood in the original languages.  For example, Psalm 145 is an acrostic poem.  That is to say, the first letter of each verse uses the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.  It is impossible to show this in a translation, but most study Bibles will make the reader aware of the acrostic structure in a footnote.

 

Verses 15-16 reveal the central message of this psalm.

The eyes of all look to you,    

and you give them their food at the proper time. 

You open your hand    

and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

I remember from childhood that my grandfather recited Psalm 145:15-16 as the table grace to begin each meal.

 

Some would say that this psalm is an overstatement of reality.  Note the use of all and every.  Note and underline the repetition of superlative words, particularly the word all, in verses 9, 10, 12-18, and 20 – “all look to you, every living thing.” Is that even possible?  Yes, when God’s will is accomplished.

 

God wants to bless all people.  Yes, he chose one people group, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as his own, but the purpose of selecting one people was to use them to bless the whole world.  When God’s will is fully accomplished, all people will know that God is good, and they will live in an intimate relationship with him. 

 

Part of that blessing is God’s willingness to give people the freedom to search for and to welcome his gifts.  What are those gifts he wants to give us?

  • Physical blessings

  • Provision for the true needs of life

  • Answers to prayer

  • The privilege of praising God

  • Most importantly, God gives us HIMSELF.

 

When we receive from God the answers to our prayers in this life, we have a provisional fulfillment of Psalm 145.  Also, in the Lord’s Prayer, we ask for Psalm 145 to be manifested in our life -- “Thy kingdom come.  Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  In Revelation 22:1-5, we anticipate the full completion of God’s will, not only in this life but also in the age to come.

 

May our future be such that we experience the fullness of God’s will in our lives, not just in part, not just as an appetizer, but as the full banquet of the goodness of God.

 

PRAYER

Almighty God, I pray that you would make real in my life the fullness of your will. May I see that you want all people to come to know you in a complete and personal way, in Jesus’ name, Amen.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR


DAVE MANN

I am a Pastor for Internationals (retired) in the UALC community. I am married to Pam, father of four, and grandfather of six. Pam and I have lived twenty of our years in other countries including France, Cameroon, Haiti, and Morocco. In retirement, we continue to enjoy writing devotionals, learning languages, and teaching English to internationals.



 
 
 

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