“Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story— 
    those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, 
those he gathered from the lands, 
    from east and west, from north and south. 

Some wandered in desert wastelands, 
    finding no way to a city where they could settle. 
They were hungry and thirsty, 
    and their lives ebbed away. 
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, 
    and he delivered them from their distress. 
He led them by a straight way 
    to a city where they could settle. 
Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love 
    and his wonderful deeds for mankind, 
for he satisfies the thirsty 
    and fills the hungry with good things.”

Psalm 107:2-9 

–

AUGUST 19, 2025

The first thing I noticed as I read Psalm 107 is that the shouts of gratitude offered to God are born amid hardship and suffering. This is in stark contrast to how we typically view gratitude. Most of us express thankfulness when things are going well; in this psalm, we glimpse people in dire need crying out to God.  

In the first scene, we see people wandering in a desert wasteland looking for a city to live in. They have no home, security, livelihood, food, water, community, identity, or hope. This is a picture of complete deprivation.  

But when they cried out to the Lord, the Lord did not ignore them. The Lord heard their cries. He took action. He responded to their needs by feeding their souls and leading them to an eternal home, an eternal city, an eternal identity, and an eternal place to belong.  

I wonder if we struggle with gratitude because we underestimate the value and impact of our spiritual health. When we imagine a spiritual life in desert-wasteland-level deprivation, we pin that on someone else and don’t realize we are more spiritually starving than we realize.  

Our spiritual deprivation can be deep and dark. But we can pour our gratitude upon God because when we cry to Him, He rescues us from spiritual death and leads us on a path to life abundant.   

Questions for reflection and discussion:  

  • How have you experienced spiritual hunger? 
  • How has God rescued you when you cried out to Him?  
  • What are you most hungry for in your soul? Safety? Unconditional love? A place to belong? All your needs met?  

Church Reading Plan: 1 Samuel 11; Romans 9