Tuesday, February 20: O God, Our Help in Ages Past
Psalm 90 is the foundation for O God, Our Help In Ages Past, written by Isaac Watts. Watts was not happy with the hymns sung in church. His father said, “Do something about it.” Watts composed the texts of many hymns and is known as the father of English hymnody.
There are many verses to this hymn, but I am struck by the first verse:
O God, our help in ages past
Our hope for years to come
Our shelter from the stormy blast
And our eternal home.
This verse reminds me what the folks in Florida and Puerto Rico went through during the recent hurricane, Irma. Dennis and I recently returned from the Florida Keys and saw firsthand the damage Irma caused. I can’t imagine what it was like with the stormy blast, gale-force winds, crashing lightning, the house shaking till the roof ripped off, your shelter damaged beyond repair: can you survive? As we walked by vacant homes, we wondered what happened to the inhabitants. We prayed they are safe in the arms of the Lord. God is our shelter in the storm, our protection and safety. God is with us always; He does not change. God is there to see us through the storms in life. We can live with the hope that God is with us, past, present, and future.
Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, be with us during the storms of life. When we feel there is no hope, greet us with a brand new dawn. Amen.