Lord, you poured out blessings on your land! You restored the fortunes of Israel. You forgave the guilt of your people— yes, you covered all their sins. Interlude You held back your fury. You kept back your blazing anger. Now restore us again, O God of our salvation. Put aside your anger against us once more. Will you be angry with us always? Will you prolong your wrath to all generations? Won’t you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you? Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation. I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying, for he speaks peace to his faithful people. But let them not return to their foolish ways. Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, so our land will be filled with his glory. Unfailing love and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed! Truth springs up from the earth, and righteousness smiles down from heaven. Yes, the Lord pours down his blessings. Our land will yield its bountiful harvest. Righteousness goes as a herald before him, preparing the way for his steps.
Psalms 85:1-13 NLT
God wants to bless His people, but there are consequences for disobeying what is right. Some of these consequences come directly from the Lord, but most of them are natural consequences from our bad decisions—that affect our relationships, finances, work, play, and health. Yet even when we are dealing with our just consequences, the Bible invites us to pray to God. The psalmist was praying in the middle of punishment that he knows was fair, yet he boldly asked the Lord to end the time of punishment and restore the blessings of His unfailing love.
The Lord wants to bless your life, and the path of righteousness and truth lead to His blessings (vv.10-11). God loves and forgives His people (v.2), reviving them and showing mercy (vv.6-7). No matter what you have done, the Lord will forgive you if you ask. Jesus died to forgive us for our sins, the ultimate expression of God’s love for us. Jesus suffered and died unjustly, which reminds us that there is unjust suffering in the world; there is also spiritual warfare. In all forms of hardships and hard times, even in our own just consequences, the Lord invites us to pray to Him. He is not a cold, distant rule-maker; He is our loving Savior who is always by our side—even in our punishments.
When you are facing consequences that you know you deserve, do you feel that God is far away or close? How can you remember that Jesus identifies with and is a friend of sinners? What difference does it make to pray to God in the midst of consequences?