Podcast Introduction Since today is Wednesday we’re going to read from the Psalms. Today we’ll read   Psalms 75-77. I’m calling today’s episode “Words of Hope.” Comments on Psalm 77 I wrote these comments at the end of 2020, and I think they still apply. In most areas of the world, the pandemic seems to be winding down. But not everywhere. Tyranny seems to be on the rise. War is looming. Crime is on the rise. Economies are in turmoil. Let’s face it…the world is still in upheaval. Let me share my thoughts from 2020.  Date: December 15, 2020 When we look back at 2020, and I include nearly every person old enough to be aware of his or her surroundings, we will remember the COVID 19 pandemic, and the effect it has had on our lives. We will remember the reports of loss of lives, the lockdowns, the isolation of loved ones, the masks, the ruination of millions of businesses, the loss of jobs, the depletion of savings accounts, the complete upending of hundreds of millions, if not billions of lives. Who would have thought that this could happen, as it has, on a global scale? When we consider how life has changed for nearly everyone on the planet, we have to ask, “Where is God in all this? Is He aware of what’s happening? Doesn’t He hear our cries for help?” I think this Psalm fits our time well.  Verse 1 I cry out to God; I call to God, and he will hear me. Beloved, be encouraged. When we call out to God, he *does* hear us. He hears the cries of the righteous, those who are His. And beloved, He is our loving Heavenly Father.  1 John 3:1 tells us, “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!..“  And since we are His children, we know that He will not leave us empty handed. Listen to this promise from Matthew 7:11-12: “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”  Verse 5 I keep thinking about the old days, the years of long ago. For us, we don’t have to remember that far back to better times. And it is painful to think that life may not return to what we considered “normal” for a very long time, if ever. Some have said that we have to used to a “new normal”. If you’re anything like me, you don’t want to accept a new normal. I don’t know what’s ahead. But I do know that whatever waits for us, God is there. And He does not change. God. Does. Not. Change. He is still our loving Heavenly Father. Just like He was yesterday. Just like He is today. And just like He is forever. Verses 6-9 At night I remember my songs. I think and I ask myself: “Will the Lord reject us forever? Will he never be kind to us again? Is his love gone forever? Has he stopped speaking for all time? Has God forgotten mercy? Is he too angry to pity us?”  Selah When we are depressed, when we have anxiety, sleep is often elusive. I think that’s one of the reasons for the spikes we’ve read about in drug and alcohol abuse, and obviously – suicide in 2020.  We lie in bed and we worry. And those of us who are believers might ask ourselves these questions. To b