Enduring Praise

A Reflection on the Psalm for April 19th, 2020:
​Divine Mercy Sunday

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PSALMS 118

R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever.

2Let Israel say, "His steadfast love endures for ever." 3Let the house of Aaron say, "His steadfast love endures for ever." 4Let those who fear the LORD say, "His steadfast love endures for ever." 

R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever.

13I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the LORD helped me. 14The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation. 15Hark, glad songs of victory in the tents of the righteous: "The right hand of the LORD does valiantly," 

R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever.

22The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner. 23This is the LORD's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24This is the day which the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

R. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever.

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Pause. Pray.

And then read more...

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I’ve always loved the text, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner”. The foundation on which everything else was built – He was rejected. And despite being rejected, His love is unfailing. He is our salvation. It’s hard to imagine someone who could love unconditionally, love so selflessly, when they’ve been rejected, tortured, and killed. But our God did just that.


But our cornerstone isn’t fluffy and friendly. He’s flipping tables. He’s speaking truth. He’s strong when we’re weak. Love isn’t afraid to speak the truth in love. Our Cornerstone also isn’t afraid to reach out into the deeps for us. One of the stories of Christ that speaks to me for Divine Mercy Sunday is the Harrowing of Hell. Jesus wasn’t sleeping in the three days between death and resurrection. He was fulfilling the promise made to the patriarchs and matriarchs that they belonged to the Father – He rescued those whose faith in God carried them through many long nights in the wilderness.


I can imagine the devil. Furious. Sure he’d won and then blinded by the Truth that walked into his tiny, broken, ugly kingdom. The fruitlessness of all his work. All those years of seeing humanity fail over and over again and the God he rejected saved them anyway.


Even now it’s hard to ignore that it feels like the devil is winning. Every attempt to do Kingdom work, he’s there – poking, prodding, tempting, attacking. He’s fighting guerrilla warfare in a battle that’s long lost. Disease and terror sweep across the world right now. But our song is still the ancient cry of God’s victory.


I saw someone on social media decrying a Christian quoting Paul: “O death, where is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55). They argued that death still very much stings right now, especially in countries experiencing a painfully high death toll from COVID-19. I would never deny the agony and grief of losing a loved one, but the sting of death isn’t about my experience – it’s about the experience of those who have departed. The sting of death is gone because those of us who are saved in Christ don’t need the Harrowing of Hell – that’s already done. We are destined for Heaven. So yes, the sting of our loss is still with us as it has ever been, but it’s tempered by the knowledge that those in Christ are never lost.


The Lord is my strength and my song, even when the days are long and dark. I will never stop singing His praises.




Stephanie Potter
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Photo by Thuong Do on Unsplash

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