“Through your might and power come to our rescue, God restore us, and make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.” Psalm 80:2b-3

The psalmist cries out for God’s face to shine upon God’s people. To have God’s face shine upon a person, or nation, was to know God’s favor, God’s blessing, God’s care. In Psalm 31, the psalm writer prays, “Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love.” Psalm 31:16

Scholars believe Psalm 80 was written after the fall of Israel’s Northern Kingdom around 721 BCE. There is a sense of abandonment in the Psalm, and fear that God no longer cares about them.

Their cry echoes through centuries of pain, wherever war has displaced, destroyed, and left people as refugees. “You have made sorrow their daily bread and copious tears their drink. You have made us an object of contempt to our neighbors, and a laughing stock to our enemies.” Psalm 80:4-5

As I read these words, pictures of people in Gaza and Sudan come to mind. Images of those who have been bombed, herded, beaten, abused, starved, and treated inhumanely . . . Where more suffering, death and loss grow with each new day.

The situation in the Northern Kingdom, must have been much like that of today’s traumatized populations. They appeal for God’s face to shine upon them again, begging God to take note of their distress. These hurting souls want what we all want, to live in peace and stability. For God to take note of their tears, to hear their cries, to be with them and restore the broken spaces in their world.

When our lives are upended and we wonder if God has abandoned us, when everything seems dark and all our appeals for mercy go seemingly unheard . . . The cry of our heart is for God’s face to shine upon us. It is a cry to restore our fortunes. A soul piercing longing, for God to see our distress, come to our aid and shower us with compassion and love.

God’s actions are not always obvious to us in our moments of deep need. Only in our backwards look can we see how the hand of God, moved in our lives. We recognize God was behind that love that came to us in surprising ways, through people who reached out to us with compassion and grace.

Even in heart wrenching places of suffering today, God is reaching out through people doing all in their power to alleviate the distress.   Using their resources, time and voices to advocate for people who cannot do so for themselves.

Whatever your situation is today, may  you know God’s face shining upon you  with love, to bless your journey, reminding you of your preciousness in God’s sight.