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This psalm invites all creation to praise God. Sometimes it is difficult for us to praise God in the midst of struggle. We may find it difficult to praise God when we are fighting for survival in whatever circumstances confront us.

Verse 8 refers to the stormy winds. During my three years of active service with the U.S. Navy I experienced several storms. The power of God easily comes to mind.

As I remember one particular sailing, we were headed south from Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, to Bermuda with about one hundred U.S. Naval Reservists on board to augment our normal ten dozen sailors and officers. The seas were rough and the winds were strong. Many of the Reservists had not been to sea in many years. Seasickness was epidemic. It was even a struggle for some in the active crew to keep their meals down.

What I most remember is a six-hour (extended two hours beyond normal) watch beginning at midnight. With below decks full of retching sounds and putrid smells, easily the best place on the ship to be was the bridge where the watch kept the vessel moving through the high and rolling seas.

I had never experienced seasickness and so had been ordered to stand that long watch, while as many as possible tried to sleep and recover. I remember feeling blessed to be healthy, glad to be of service, and overjoyed to be in fresh air, especially as the sun came up in the east.

That experience of the stormy night remains with me for several reasons. Serving by standing watch when many others were unable to do so was gratifying. The gift of good health from God is a bounty that most of us experience or remember gratefully. Since most of the watch group was as sprightly as I was, there was a special camaraderie among that night’s watchstanders. We loved our work.

God calls us to our personal missions in life. Listen to the call of God on your life. God grants us great bounty: for some it is health, for others creativity, for others intellect, for others energy. But for all of us God gives us Love.

God puts us into situations with other people to help us complete our missions and to feel that we are a wanted and important part of a group, the children of God.

Often I recall the times of service, the bounteous blessings, and the inspiration of fellow companions on the road of life. I know that I am greatly blessed.

I also experienced the total darkness of being at sea with only the stars for light. It is a unique feeling, standing on the deck of a moving ship with muffled red lights, to see only dark ocean, dark sky, and billions of bright stars.