Based on Psalm 147:12-20
In this psalm, God’s people are told to praise the Lord. Why? Because God strengthens and blesses, grants peace and provision. But the next part of the text seems odd: God’s word is sent to the earth to spread snow and frost and hail and storms.
Jewish legend has it that there are 7 levels of heaven, and the 6th heaven is where snow and hail and storms are stored. King David thought these things were a problem for heaven, so he prayed to purge heaven, believing it not becoming that such things should be near to God’s throne; so, they were to be removed to the earth. Thus, God sends them swiftly to the earth as in verse 15, dispersing them according to the Lord’s word and provision.
This story of David depicts the forces of nature somehow at odds with the peace of heaven; yet here they are in the context of God blessing the people and granting peace within their borders. Snow and hail are not seen as problems – although they might be inconveniences; instead, they are means by which God provides for their needs, along with God’s word, so that blessing and peace may be had. These, then, give reason to praise the Lord.
Author Robert Fulghum tells the story of Mr. Wollman, a holocaust survivor. He looked like a bloodhound in a suit and coughed a lot. He liked his night shift because it gave him quiet time and peace – something he had prayed for while in Auschwitz. One day he heard Fulghum complain about how hard he worked only to have his meals deducted from his paycheck. That’s when Wollman said, “Your problem is you don’t know the difference between a problem and an inconvenience. If you break your neck, you have no food, or your house in on fire, you got a problem – the rest is inconvenience. Life is inconvenient. Life if lumpy… Learn to separate the inconveniences from the real problems – and you won’t annoy people…so much.”
Fulghum wrote that seldom had he been hit between the eyes so hard with the truth. Now, years later, when ready to be upset, or do or say something stupid, a sorrowful face appears in his mind and asks: Problem or inconvenience? A lump in your oatmeal, a lump in your throat is not the same. One should learn the difference. He calls this the Wollman Test of Reality. It can help us discern peace, not as the world would define it or give it, but as the gift of God, not something to be contrived or controlled. That is when we learn to get out of its way and receive it, honor it and practice it, giving God the praise.
Here are a few ways to apply the Wollman Test: 1) Count your blessings every day. Note how the psalm ends by pointing out how God has blessed the people. Their response: Praise the Lord! 2) Focus on how God strengthens your life, not on the disruptions and things over which you have no control. 3) Remain connected with God and others; don’t withdraw from worship and fellowship when life gets “lumpy”. Stand ready and steady within the borders of God’s people to receive strength and blessing. And finally, 4) Seek balance. Peace, shalom in the Hebrew, is about what is good, wholesome and healthy. Sometimes, a little well-timed and appropriate humor can reveal the difference between a real problem and a mere inconvenience and help you find the right balance going forward.
There’s a story of God telling the angel Michael about keeping balance in creation, and pointed him to South Jersey where the weather is moderate, the soil rich, the farms bountiful; with beautiful rivers and wildlife alongside people who are modest, devout and humorous.
Michael looked on in admiration, saying, “Seems like a nice place, this place called South Jersey, but what about balance?” That’s when God replied wisely, “Wait until you see the taxes and crazy drivers!”
May God bless you and your borders in 2022, and grant the peace of Christ! Praise the Lord!