Singing Psalm 116 moving between life and death
No matter how bad it looks from where you stand now, you just don’t know what is ahead as you turn the corner. Except if you are near death and aware of it, being in Christ you know without a doubt what is ahead!
Fighting between life and death
Jesus restores light from darkness and shines brighter than anyone before or after him as the forerunner of living between life and death. He wipes away every tear and brings unmitigated joy. The challenge is to keep your eyes from wandering off of him and to fix your eyes firmly on him the moment they begin to wander off. This battle is the one you are engaged in.
Focus on the prize Jesus gives you:
In the trenches – Don’t let go of Jesus who brings life out of death.
On the mountain top – Don’t lose sight of Jesus but keep your eye on the prize which is himself and his work on your behalf.
Through the journey – Keep close to Jesus as your only hope in this journey through every peak and valley, from your first step to your last between life and death. Do this with his people, giving him thanks and praise for saving you and them through death and from its sting.
Dancing between life and death
You are in a dance as well as in a battle, as you navigate to and fro between life and death, sometimes with spins, dips, and jumps in between life and death, this life and the one that will last forever.
The dance within the battle is the gentle way of knowing how to respond to times and situations. What does this time or situation require of you? How can you be a blessing in this circumstance? I’m not a dancer, but I’m pretty sure that if I’m stepping on my dance partner’s feet, something is not going right with our dance. Growing up accustomed to minding how you feel without regard for how the person with whom you are interacting feels, is essentially stepping on your dance partner’s feet. “For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.”
Singing Psalm 116 between life and death
Our Father is not only our commander-in-chief but also our dance instructor as he whispers the way to step each moment each dancer cries out to him in dependence on him for their unique part in the dance. When you trust his instructions and are sensitive to the changes that often happen on the fly, you can go from waltzing to tangoing on a dime, without missing a beat, being flustered, or resisting the need you are attempting to meet, whatever it might be. You are not thinking about your preferences, and pretty soon, you find even those change to be in line, in synch, with your Lord and with his people. Singing Psalm 116 awakens you to be all in the fight and dance between life and death empowering you to do this without fear of either life or death. You come to Jesus to rest in both.
You are a part of a synchronized dance company within an army formation. Only the great Triune God could negotiate you and all his people through such a complexity that not one is ever out of step within his plan. You thank him that each one is precious in his sight as he preserves those who are simple, leaving the result to him without undue care. Whether he calls you to stay, dance, and live now, or whether he is now bringing you even more fully to himself to life through death in a new dance, you never need to worry or focus on the steps because you trust him to lead and keep your feet from stumbling in either state.
Either way, you are precious in his sight, and you hold him precious in your sight.
“I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy.” ~ Psalm 116:1
April 5, 2022
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