SOG and Psalm 77 (17 March)

I was reading in Psalm in my Bible Reading plan today. As I continue to learn about Relational Wisdom and how to apply the SOG plan I believe this Psalm is a great illustration of being Self-Aware. And also a great example of the Father helping someone who is struggling to become more God-aware, giving him the ability to control his emotions and speak truth to Himself.

Ps 77:1-10 Asaph’s complaint.

I believe these verses illustrate great self-awareness as Asaph struggles with accepting what the Father has done, and the circumstances he finds himself in. Following the RW360 material, to become self-aware, we need to READ ourselves. I believe we can see the letters of the r-e-a-d acrostic in Psalm 77.

R – Recognize and name our emotions.

Psalm 77:1-3 “I cry out to the Father. Yes, I shout, oh, that the Father would listen to me. When I was in deep trouble, I searched for Him. All night long, I prayed with my hands lifted toward heaven. But my soul was not comforted. As I think of Him I moan, overwhelmed with longing for his help.

Asaph is very self-aware here. He recognizes that he is;

• Overwhelmed, because the Father did not help when he was in deep trouble.
• He was up all night longing, seeking the Father in Prayer
• He did not find comfort in his prayer.

E – Evaluate your emotions. And determine where they are coming from.

If we apply that to this Psalm, I think we can see that in Psalm 77:4-6. Asaph, says;

• You don’t let me sleep.
• I am so distressed, I can’t even pray.
• I remember the good old days and how things were. My nights were full of Joyful songs, but now they’re full of searching for the Father but not finding him, not finding His comfort.

Asaph was describing his emotions here, I believe. He says that he was too distressed even to pray. As he remembered the good old days and how things used to be, and he acknowledges they aren’t that way anymore, he is overwhelmed with the feeling of loss and abandonment.

If we evaluate his emotions, I think we can say he is disappointed with God. He’s searching for God, and not finding any comfort.

A – assess where my emotions are taking me.

Asaph isn’t assessing here. He’s actually declaring this to be what he feels. This is where his emotions are leading him. He has been “hijacked” by his emotions. He is no longer thinking with his mind, he is letting his emotions run wild… and they are taking him down a deep dark hole.

Psalm 77:7-9

• Has the Lord rejected me forever.
• Will he never again be kind to me?
• Is his unfailing love come to an end. Is it gone forever?
• Have his promises permanently failed.
• Has our Father forgotten to be gracious?
• Has he slammed the door on his compassion?

This is quite an assessment of where Asaph’s emotions are taking him. This is what hijacking thinking looks like! Overwhelmed, hopeless, desperate… This is how he feels, and the Father seems to be okay with that. He lets him rant. And he lets him speak these words.

D – Direct / Deal with your emotions.
The last letter of our acrostic is “D” Which stands for direct or redirect our emotions. Directing our emotions toward the fortress, toward the high tower. Becoming God-aware. And then dealing with our emotions to get them back under obedience to the Son (2 Cor 10:5).

As we go back to Psalm 77 I believe Asaph does this in the end. Psalm 77:10-20 Asaph is dealing with his emotions, directing them toward the fortress, the High Tower, and becoming God-aware.

Psalm 77:10 As Asaph spoke these words to himself, “This is my fate. Father, the most high, has turned his back against me.” Ps 77:10 says, “AS I SAID THIS I recalled…” As he reflected on the dark hole his emotions were taking him, he recalls what the Father did long ago (Ps 77:11) As he begins to reflect on the Father’s unfailing love and faithfulness in the past. This results in him saying, (Ps 77:12) “Now, I can’t stop thinking about them.”

Ps 77:13 You O Father are holy. Is there any as mighty as you?
Ps 77:14 You are the source of great wonders. You demonstrate your awesome power
Ps 77:15 by your strong arm, you redeemed your people.
Ps 77:16 when the Red Sea saw you, it trembled. It’s as if he pictured the sea seeing the Father and running away.
Ps 77:17 And your road led right through the middle of the sea,
Ps 77:19-20, you led your people along that road.

This is where Psalm 77 ends. But what a difference from the beginning to the end.
In the beginning. He’s overwhelmed. He feels like the Father has abandoned him, has forgotten him.
He spends all night praying and seeking the Father and finds no comfort.
He feels like he’s just in deep trouble and the Father is silent.

But, once he becomes God-Aware, and remembers truth, and is able to take back his hijacked emotions, he begins to deal with them by directing them to truth, back to the fortress, the high tower. As he does that, it changes his whole attitude. And instead of dwelling on his situation, his loss, and what the Father is NOT doing, he remembers the Father’s mighty deeds, his marvelous work, and how great and awesome He is. As he ponders that, he says he couldn’t stop thinking about how great the Father is and all He has done.

And as he thinks about the Father’s mighty works, the crossing of the Red Sea, His incredible demonstration of his awesome power, he is encouraged to wait and to trust in the Father again.

This is what stopping to READ ourselves, and dealing with our emotions by bringing our Father into our thinking can and should do. May we all grow in our ability to do that, especially when we are facing things that don’t make sense in our eyes.

Praying for you all in these things.