What if. . . If it had not been

This morning I woke up and began my day in grateful praise to God to see another day. I have so much to be thankful for, and as I reflected upon the goodness of God, I thought of Psalm 124 which I read aloud in the New Living Translation. The Psalmist stimulates our thinking with one of those “What if. . .” questions:

Psalm 124
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.

1 What if the LORD had not been on our side? Let all Israel repeat:
2 What if the LORD had not been on our side when people attacked us?
3 They would have swallowed us alive in their burning anger.
4 The waters would have engulfed us; a torrent would have overwhelmed us.
5 Yes, the raging waters of their fury would have overwhelmed our very lives.
6 Praise the LORD, who did not let their teeth tear us apart!
7 We escaped like a bird from a hunter’s trap. The trap is broken, and we are free!
8 Our help is from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

Verse 1 in the New King James Version was the inspiration for this personal poetic expression:

If It Had Not Been for the Lord

“If it had not been the LORD who was on our side,”
Let Israel now say—

Psalm 124:1

If it had not been for the Lord who was on my side,
I would have drowned in the sea from the tears I cried.
I shudder to think just where I would be today.
I would have lost my mind or turned and walked away,
But I learned that God is faithful—this cannot be denied.

He was there to guide when I was tempted and tried,
My shelter from the storm where I could run and hide.
He was my deliverer—that is all I have to say:
If it had not been for the Lord.

Enemies rose up like a flood to wash aside,
But God came through and rescued me and turned the tide.
Pressing toward the mark, the dawning of a brand-new day,
Through all my trials I learned to watch, fight, and pray.
The Lord is my keeper; in Him, I confide:
If it had not been for the Lord.

Esther Mui sings “Psalm 124 Song (NKJV) “Our Help is in the Name of the Lord.”:

We conclude with this comment—“ ‘No what-ifs, ands, or buts about it,’ the Lord is good.”

Tags: If it had not been for the Lord, Psalm 124, Psalm 124:1, What if