METHODIST DAILY REFLECTION FOR TODAY TUESDAY, 8TH SEPTEMBER 2026 - CELEBRATING GOD'S DELIVERANCE
DATE: TUESDAY, 8TH SEPTEMBER 2026
THEME: CELEBRATING GOD'S DELIVERANCE
PASSAGE: PSALM 114
1 When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language;
2 Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion.
3 The sea saw it, and fled: Jordan was driven back.
4 The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.
5 What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou fleddest? thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back?
6 Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams; and ye little hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob;
8 Which turned the rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.
MESSAGE
Psalm 114 has been called the most exquisitely crafted of all the Psalms because of its four perfectly matched two-line stanzas, its smoothly flowing parallelism, its use of personification, and its mounting suspense. All of this literary beauty combines to highlight the central theme of the whole Old Testament, if not the entire Bible.
This is the second of the six Psalms often called the Egyptian Hallel (Psalm 113-118), so called because each one begins with Hallelujah (except Psalm 114, unless Psalm 113:9 is really the introduction to Psalm 114) and because each one is related in some way to Israel's, deliverance from bondage in Egypt. That is obviously the case with Psalm 114 (cf. verse 1). It is a Psalm of praise without the usual invitation to praise. Psalm 114 focuses on the reason for praise by eloquently summarizing Israel's redemption story. Imagine families with little children and aged grandparents gathered in worship.
Psalm 114 is read as the powerful story behind the greatest wonder of Israel's existence. They had become "God's sanctuary" in the world, the place from which God rules the world. In these few words, we are reminded of the heart of Old and New Testament religion - the God of the universe is once again present in the world in the nation of Israel and, then, in Jesus of Nazareth.
Psalm 114 explains how those wonders happened by retelling the story of the Exodus (Exo 12-19). Note the wording of verses 1 and 2. "When Israel came out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of a foreign tongue, Judah became God's sanctuary, Israel his dominion." It is possible that Psalm 114 was written in Exile or just after. Its intent was to remind Israel of the history that had made them who they were and to invite them to not only praise God for the wonders He had done, but also to tremble in His presence.
MEMORY VERSE:
"Tremble thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob." Psalm 114:7
HYMN: MHB 10 (6.7.6.7.6.6.6.) NOW thank we all our God
1. NOW thank we all our God,
With hearts,and hands,and voices;
Who wondrous things hath done,
In whom His world rejoices;
Who, from our mothers' arms,
Hath blessed us on our way
With countless gifts of love,
And still Is ours today.
2. O may this bounteous God
Through all our life be near us,
With ever-joyful hearts
And blessed peace to cheer us,
And keep us In His grace,
And guide us when perplexed,
And free us from all Ills
In this world and the next.
3. All praise and thanks to God
The Father now be given,
The Son, and Him who reigns
With Them in highest heaven:
The one, eternal God,
Whom earth and heaven adore;
For thus it was, is now,
And shall be evermore.
Amen.
PRAYER
Accept all our praises, worship and thanksgiving, O merciful God, for we pray In Jesus' Name. Amen.
READ:
DAY: Ezekiel 16
NIGHT: Ezekiel 17