Homesick: A Study of Psalm 90Sample

Gladness

Moses knew God in a real way. This is why, even as he talked about God’s wrath, Moses was fully aware of another characteristic of God: His compassion. Compassion is part of who God is (God Himself told Moses this in Exodus 34), and in Psalm 90, it’s like Moses is banking on that truth. In verse 13, he says, “Turn and have compassion on your servants!” If God will have compassion on Moses and his people, everything will change. They will have joy and gladness and every good thing!

This is true for anyone who looks to God, fully recognizing they are a sinner in need of His forgiveness. When we look to Him, our sin is transferred to Jesus (who bore the punishment for them on the cross), and Jesus’s goodness is transferred to us. We are welcomed home to God though the path and the door He made through Jesus! You can be sure that joy and gladness and every good thing are a part of this home.

But the good news gets even better. Yes, Jesus came to die for our sins, and He rose again to conquer death—but did you know He’s coming back? He’ll set up a new heaven and a new earth, the perfect home where all of God’s people—everyone who has looked to Him for compassion—will live together with God in perfect bliss.

Though Moses missed out on so many beautiful experiences of home during his time on earth, he knew God offered the truest home. This may provide comfort to your homesick heart too. God is the ultimate home our hearts were created for, and when Jesus returns, we’ll experience it in full. All of God’s children will be together in the homiest home that no one can break. Come, Lord Jesus!

READ: Read Psalm 90 and look for anything about gladness. Read Revelation 21-22 in the same way. Then, take a moment to journal about these questions:

1. In your own words, explain the journey from being under God’s wrath to experiencing genuine gladness.
2. Based on Psalm 90, what is the root cause of true gladness?
3. Have you ever experienced gladness in your home? Write about that memory. Then, imagine how that gladness is just a glimmer of the homiest home that Jesus is building for God’s family.

Thank you for reading

Thank you for reading about God’s good news for the homesick! This reading plan was written by Caroline Saunders, author of the children’s book The Story of Home, which retells God's big story by looking at the Bible’s stories of home. Click here to learn more.