July-29-0478-More than conquerors
478_More than conquerors Psalm 44:1-8 O God, we have heard with our ears, our fathers have told us, what deeds you performed in their days, in the days of old: 2 you with your own hand drove out the nations, but them you planted; you afflicted the peoples, but them you set free; 3 for not by their own sword did they win the land, nor did their own arm save them, but your right hand and your arm, and the light of your face, for you delighted in them. 4 You are my King, O God; ordain salvation for Jacob! 5 Through you we push down our foes; through your name we tread down those who rise up against us. 6 For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me. 7 But you have saved us from our foes and have put to shame those who hate us. 8 In God we have boasted continually, and we will give thanks to your name forever. 20-26 If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread out our hands to a foreign god, 21 would not God discover this? For he knows the secrets of the heart. 22 Yet for your sake we are killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered. 23 Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever! 24 Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? 25 For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our belly clings to the ground. 26 Rise up; come to our help! Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love! A few years ago, a young missionary couple moved to a remote village in Southeast Asia. They had left behind comfort, career, and family, believing with all their hearts that God had called them to bring the gospel to an unreached tribe. They worked tirelessly—learning the language, caring for the sick, teaching the children, and sharing the good news. But after five years, the fruit they had hoped for never came. The few converts they had were threatened or driven away, their presence was mocked by villagers, and eventually, they were asked to leave. As they boarded the boat in silence, hearts heavy with defeat, the wife turned to her husband and whispered, “Did we fail?” That question echoes the same bewilderment and pain found in Psalm 44. This is not a psalm of personal complaint or individual struggle. It’s the voice of a people—a community of God’s own, grappling with a painful and public defeat. The nation of Israel had known what it was like to be chosen, loved, and delivered by the Lord. Their history was filled with divine intervention and supernatural victories. They remembered how the Promised Land had been given to them, not by the strength of their armies, but by the power of God who fought on their behalf. The psalmist begins with a remembrance of this rich heritage, “It was not by their sword that they won the land,