A refrain recurs throughout Psalm 80:

Restore us, O God;
   let your face shine, that we may be saved.

There are times in life when God's face seems to have dimmed.
God is looking elsewhere — or so it seems.

Today began with an urgent call from our caretaker: the lower hall (our Sunday School & meeting area) is under three inches of water. Quickly, call the plumber and the electrician to find out what caused it. There are two sump pumps in that area, and neither is working. And call the "restoration" company to clean up the mess and get things back the way they were.

A great way to start the day—but has God's face "dimmed" for us this morning? I think not. As the saying goes, "stuff happens," and we can choose to blame God for it if we will, but I never think that helps at all. Stuff happens, and God calls us to deal with it. It seems to me that God's face never really dims, but we turn ourselves away, and we look elsewhere, into the dark corners of despair.

Help us to keep our faces turned to you, O Lord,
that your face may shine upon us,
as we continue on through life,
with all its troubles—and its joys.