Using today's psalm
Last week’s psalm described times in the course of a life where God seemed to have withdrawn, and today’s takes up the same theme, encouraging us to keep watching through every evil for the mercy of God to appear. ‘We’ve had enough,’ it says, ‘and we know you will come to save us. We’re looking out for you. Hurry up!’
The question is, when people today find themselves in a desperate situation, do they cry to God, or do they simply complain generally? When we see distress, how often do we let ourselves be used by God as agents of mercy?
Singing together
How to use the psalms in worship.
Response line: Our eyes look to the Lord our God, until he shows us his mercy.
Our eyes look to Look up and index and middle finger of right hand move from eyes upwards.
the Lord [our God], Two index fingers point upwards.
until he shows us his mercy. Make ‘m’s with three fingers of each hand facing body and move in the rhythm of the word mercy.
Hymns and songs based on Psalm 123 include: ‘Up to you I lift my eyes’ (PRA), ‘We turn our eyes to you’ (TP), and John Bell’s ‘As the eyes of a Servant’ (in We walk his way, Wild Goose).