“Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.” (Ps. 103:1-2)

It has been said that it is easier to preach ten sermons than it is to live one. I believe this is true. I have found too often in life that loud hosannas more easily come forth from a comfortable, blessed, relatively trouble-free existence than from the soul that is struggling to find the way through valleys of despair, pain, and hopelessness. Yet is in these ordeals of panic and pain that we find ourselves bewailing our lot and wishing for the new day’s dawn. But the good Master designs to draw us closer to Him in these confrontations of crisis. C.H. Spurgeon once wrote that the Lord gets His greatest servants in the highlands of affliction. While most of us are probably not among His greatest servants, He still teaches each of His loved ones about the significance of suffering and how it sows seeds of thankfulness and instruction in our wounded hearts.

I was recently reminded of these great truths when I once again read the 103rd Psalm, described simply as a “Psalm of David.” Only a Psalm! Only the musings of a plain, yet great man, who had learned much, praised much, sinned much, yet had come through the rains and storms of life with his songs still intact, his vision of God sharpened and enhanced. He had spent his years as a tale that is told (Ps. 90:9, written by another who was instructed by the trials and afflictions he encountered while crossing a desert with other travelers – Moses.)

It is wise of us to note the descriptions of the Almighty that reverberate throughout the Psalms. They tell us much of our God. In these inspired writings of the 103rd we read descriptions of Who and What He is: a healer (v.3), a forgiver (v. 3), a redeemer (v. 4), a giver of crowns (v. 4). He is One whose very being is described as filled with lovingkindness and tender mercies (v. 4). A satisfier of hungry mouths (v. 5), an executor of righteousness and judgment for the oppressed (v. 6), and so many more lovely descriptions of our Saviour are given throughout the chapter. But in the midst of all these attributes we also learn that He is a giver of many benefits (v.2). According to the matchless 1828 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is filled with Scripture references to defend the definitions he uses therein, is the following explanation of what is meant by “benefits”: “an act of kindness, a favor, or an advantage, profit, or something that contributes to prosperity and happiness. It can also refer to financial help or services provided by an employer or other entity.” Oh, the richness of the benefits of the Lord! To souls struggling in Bunyan’s “slough of despond” it is a promise of the dawn, a return to satisfying conditions, a guarantee that it won’t rain always.

We must constantly remind ourselves of these benefits lest we “forget” them (v.1). He satisfies the souls of His saints with so many good things, though they are often wrapped in the packaging of depression, sadness, and manifold temptations. Think of all the magnificent hymns of Fanny Crosby that poured out of her heartbreaking blindness. The things she must have seen of her God that delighted her soul! The pastor’s heavy load; the mother’s thankless toil; the father’s ceaseless labor; the missionary’s tears at rejection; the struggling teenager’s afflictions with hurts and disappointments not revealed to others; and so many other tales to be told.So let us remember that when we get to our wit’s end, we will find this wonderful God has gone on ahead of us and prepared the way through the wilderness. He is our God forever. Oh, what a benefit is He!