For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is in Him.

A reflection on Psalm 62
“For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.” (Psalm 62:1-2)

We do not live in a world or a culture of silence, of waiting, of dependence on God. We live in a world and culture of the have it now and today, of busyness and panic that can leave us frazzled, hurried, hasty and anxious…

There are times when there is so much going on, so much happening (or maybe even so little), times when our circumstances seem to control our emotional and mental reality and we are left overwhelmed, anxious, frustrated or resigned to the situation and we can give up hope…

I love this Psalm. It is our remedy. Verses 5-8 say: “For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us.”

How often I need to hear these words, how often we each need to hear them. The psalmist here (as at other times), speaks to himself. ‘O my soul, wait in silence!’ He reminds himself of the truth: ‘my hope is from God. He only is my rock and my salvation!’

You may be facing something difficult. It may be that you don’t know how you can go on, or what will happen next.

Or it might be just a sense of anxiousness and feeling overwhelmed by circumstances… Whatever it is I pray this Psalm will remind you that God is a Rock to his people, a Fortress who you can pour out your heart to.

Take some time to stop, to rest, to meditate on who this God is. Mighty to save, the God who loves you so much that He sent Jesus to rescue you from your sin and brokenness, and bring you and me into relationship with Him, as our Father in heaven. Stop, and wait in silence on God.

He never fails those who trust in Him. Never.

a change that God Himself brings about.

A reflection on Jeremiah 31:33
“This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the LORD. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

When you read through the Old Testament in the Bible, so much of it is a sad, sad story. We learn about a God who is so good, so faithful and so loving. But of a people who are so faulty, so proud and so sinful. A people who continue to turn away from the loving God who made them – who made them so that they might enjoy relationship with Him.

Even though God continues to preserve and help this wayward people, for the most part we see no change in their attitude, but instead a hardness, a deadness, a continual running to everything and everyone else – other than to the God who continued to provide for them, who continued to lead them, and free them, and love them.

But here we see one of the greatest passages of promise in the entire Bible. God Himself promised in Jeremiah that there would come a day when He would make a new covenant, a new agreement with His people – where He would put His law in their minds and write it on their hearts. Where He will be their God and they will be His people.

This is exactly what God did through Jesus. Jesus, the Son of God came to die on the cross to make this possible. His death and resurrection opened up the way for all those who trust in Him to be forever forgiven and to become God’s very own children, who are given now God’s very own Spirit.

This change that God Himself brings about creates a new person who no longer wants to live how they lived before, but wants to know and please God. Someone who treasures Jesus and delights in Him. Is this to gain merit with God? No!

It is because of all that God has done in Jesus, because we were like sheep going astray, but now we have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. (1 Peter 2:25).