Selah: When the Earth Gives Way | Psalm 20

Jul 26, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: When Earth Gives Way, God Hovers Over Chaos

The ground shifts beneath our feet without warning. Phone calls shatter routines, mountainside prayers end in sudden absence, and hospital rooms become altars of prolonged surrender. Yet Scripture insists God’s Spirit still hovers over chaos as at creation’s dawn. He speaks order into unraveled stories, mends fractures with resurrection hope, and carves rivers of purpose through wastelands of loss. Trust grows not in the absence of pain, but in the presence of the One who breathes life into dust. [55:12]

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea.”
(Psalm 46:1-2, ESV)

Reflection: Where does your current “earth giving way” moment most tempt you to doubt God’s nearness? How might His hovering Spirit be inviting you to lean into His creative redemption today?

Day 2: Selah: Pausing When the Song Isn’t Over

Grief cannot be rushed. The Psalms teach us to mark sacred pauses mid-struggle – to breathe, weep, or let truth sink deeper than hurried devotionals allow. Selah interrupts our compulsive fixing, not to halt worship but to anchor it. Like paramedics kneeling on a mountain or daughters dancing in pajamas, we honor sorrow without surrendering hope. The melody continues, but first we let tears water the soil where faith grows gnarled and resilient. [37:54]

“I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad.”
(Psalm 34:1-2, ESV)

Reflection: What unresolved ache have you been rushing past? What might it look like to “Selah” with that pain today – not to abandon praise, but to deepen it?

Day 3: Baptisms in Uncharted Rivers

Eighty-year-old men dive into icy waters because grief rewrites itineraries. Sometimes obedience means staying on the mountain when every instinct says flee. Brent’s men kept hiking trails he’d planned, discovering baptisms he’d prayed for. God authors stories that outlive our earthly chapters, turning memorials into ministries. Our tears water seeds we’ll never see bloom, but the Kingdom harvests them in due time. [01:02:48]

“He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.”
(Psalm 126:6, ESV)

Reflection: What “uncharted river” has your loss or struggle placed you in? How might God be inviting you to plant seeds in terrain you didn’t choose?

Day 4: Dancing in the Valley of Shadows

Worship becomes warfare when practiced in funeral homes. Daughters twirl in grief’s grip not as denial, but defiance – proclaiming rhythms louder than death’s drum. Sandra’s lipstick kisses and Brent’s bear hugs live on in this kinetic faith. We don’t dance because the night is over, but because the Morning Star still pierces darkness. Every swaying step declares: the grave’s walls are temporary. [01:04:06]

“You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!”
(Psalm 30:11-12, ESV)

Reflection: What heavy burden might Jesus be inviting you to “dance with” today – not by dismissing its weight, but by asserting His greater strength?

Day 5: When Trust Rises from Fresh Graves

Empty chairs in sanctuaries test our theology. We don’t trust chariots – not medical teams, emergency plans, or our own stamina. We trust the Man who walked out of His own grave. Brent’s hiking boots stay on Maine soil, Sandra’s seat stays vacant, but Christ’s empty tomb echoes through our emptiness. Resurrection isn’t a metaphor; it’s the marrow in our bones when standing feels impossible. [53:29]

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright.”
(Psalm 20:7-8, ESV)

Reflection: What “chariot” have you been leaning on that’s failing? How might Christ’s resurrection power help you stand upright in your current struggle?

Sermon Summary

Psalm 20 meets Genesis Church in a day of trouble, a day filled with hurt, emptiness, and tears after Brent Dela Cruz and Sandra McFarlane stepped into the presence of Jesus in the same week. The grief is not treated like an interruption to a program, because the first DNA of the church is people over programs. The body suffers when one part suffers, and the pain of one family becomes the pain of the whole family.

The Psalms give language for moments like this because the Psalms are not just in the head, they are in the heart. Psalm 121 lifts hurting eyes to the hills and says help comes from the Lord. Psalm 46 says God is refuge and strength when the earth gives way. Psalm 34 says the Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Psalm 20 now says, “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble,” and that word lands right where the church is living.

The day of trouble is not only one kind of trouble. A grieving wife is in trouble. Children are in trouble. Men still in Maine are in trouble. A marriage, a hospital bed, a financial burden, a hidden vice, a crushed spirit, all of it belongs before God. Psalm 20 does not say trouble has to get big enough before God should be asked for help. The text simply says the Lord answers in the day of trouble and sends help from his sanctuary.

Selah becomes the needed word in the middle of the pain. Selah means pause, breathe, stop rushing past the truth that has just been spoken. The song is not over, but the soul needs room to cry, pray, breathe, and remember what is true. Psalm 20 calls the brokenhearted not to run from God, but to grab hold of what is known to be true now more than ever.

The Psalm then turns the whole room toward trust. Some trust in chariots and horses, but God’s people trust in the name of the Lord. Human strength collapses, but God saves with the saving might of his right hand. Jesus alone controls chaos, mends brokenness, gives life beyond the grave, and holds people upright when life does not make sense. Brent and Sandra would not want eyes fixed on them, but on Jesus, because the song continues, and praise keeps going.

Key Takeaways

1. Trouble is not measured by size. Psalm 20 does not rank pain before inviting prayer. The Lord’s ear is not reserved only for the most dramatic tragedy, because hidden burdens can crush a person just as deeply as public loss. The day of trouble is the day when strength runs out and God’s sanctuary becomes the only real place to look for help. [34:27]
2. Selah gives the soul room. Selah refuses to let truth get rushed past like another line in a song. The pause becomes holy because the heart needs time to breathe, cry, pray, and let the promise sink beneath the noise. A soul that keeps running can miss the God who is already near to the brokenhearted. [37:20]
3. Trust stands when strength collapses. Psalm 20 names the right hand of God as the place of saving might, the strength only God has. Human power can respond to chaos, but it cannot undo death, heal the deepest fracture, or raise the crushed spirit. Trust begins to stand upright when self-sufficiency finally admits it cannot carry the weight. [51:02]
4. Christianity shines when life unravels. Faith is not shown at its deepest when everything is smooth, comfortable, and easy to explain. The beauty of the body of Christ appears when people gather around grief, carry burdens, and point one another back to Jesus as refuge and rock. The unraveling exposes whether trust is only a Sunday word or a living hope. [55:56]
5. God writes God-sized stories. The baptism of Jose in the middle of a painful trip shows that tragedy does not stop God from working. God can place eternal fruit in the very space that feels most confusing and heavy. Pain is not called good, but God is still able to write stories that only make sense because his hand was present.

## [62:48]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[19:30] - A Church Gathers in Grief
[23:50] - People Over Programs
[26:10] - Where to Go When Life Makes No Sense
[28:09] - Why the Psalms Meet the Heart
[32:16] - Psalm 20: Help in Trouble
[36:11] - Selah: Pause and Breathe
[40:15] - Making Space to Pray
[49:43] - Making It About Jesus
[51:53] - Trusting Beyond Chariots and Horses
[54:19] - Jesus Controls the Chaos
[57:13] - Blessing God at All Times
[58:35] - The Men Stay in Maine
[62:48] - God-Sized Stories in Pain
[66:41] - Rising to Worship and Trust

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Psalm 20:1 — “May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!” [32:16]

Psalm 20:7 — “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” [52:03]

Psalm 46:1-2 — “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,”

Psalm 34:17-18 — “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”

Psalm 121:1-2 — “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”

Observation questions

In Psalm 20:1, what does the verse say God does for someone in “the day of trouble”? [32:16]
What different kinds of trouble were named—both public grief and quieter personal burdens? [33:14]
In Psalm 20:7, what two kinds of trust are set against each other? [52:03]
What did “Selah” call people to do in the middle of pain and prayer? [37:20]

Interpretation questions

Psalm 20 does not sort trouble by size before inviting people to pray. What does that reveal about God’s heart toward both visible grief and hidden struggles? [34:40]
If “Selah” means pausing instead of rushing past truth, why might that pause matter so much when a heart is broken or a spirit feels crushed? [38:20]
Psalm 20:7 contrasts trusting in chariots and horses with trusting in the name of the Lord. In present-day life, what might “chariots and horses” look like for a believer? [52:20]
When life unravels, faith in Jesus becomes more than a Sunday idea. Why does suffering often reveal what a person is really standing on? [56:18]

Application questions

What kind of trouble feels most present right now—grief, confusion, family strain, financial pressure, a battle with sin, or something else? What would it look like to bring that honestly before God instead of minimizing it? [33:43]
Some people move so fast that the soul cannot catch up. Where is there a need for “Selah” this week—to stop, breathe, cry, pray, or sit with what is true about God? [39:07]
When pressure rises, what is the first place trust usually runs—to personal strength, other people, money, plans, or control? What would it look like to shift that trust back to the Lord in one specific area? [51:19]
God is near to the brokenhearted, and the body of Christ is meant to come around people in pain. Is there someone who needs care, presence, or prayer right now? What is one simple way to show up for them this week? [56:33]
Praise is not only for easy days. What would it mean to bless the Lord at all times in this season, especially if life does not make sense right now? [57:13]
God still writes God-sized stories in painful places. Has there ever been a moment when something hard also became a place where God was clearly at work? How might that help strengthen trust now? [01:02:48]
Those who trust in the Lord rise and stand upright. What would “standing” look like this week—not pretending everything is fine, but choosing to hold onto Jesus in the middle of trouble? [01:07:12]

Sermon Clips

59s

#SelahBreathe

“You might would be able to say it best this way, Selah means breathe. Just breathe a minute. You're going so fast, and you're trying to fix whatever is in front of you by yourself, and you have no strength and no energy. You're fully empty. Just stop and breathe for a second. Think about the truths and promises of God that you might need right now. You might say that Selah means to pause, so that you can cry if you need to cry. It might mean pause because you need to pray. The song will continue, but right now, you just need to pause because some of you run so fast, your soul can't catch up to your body.”

50s

#ClingToTruth

“So what do you do when things don't make sense? What do you do when the pastor stands in front of you and says, I don't have the answers you're looking for right now. Will you do what we know we're supposed to do? You don't come to me. You don't come to other people. You come to God. What we do is we don't stop. We lean in, and we don't let go of everything that we know to be true. We grab hold. We hold on to it now more than ever. We cling to it. We we we don't we don't run off from it. This is the moment where we get to be the church, be the body. We get to take what we've been learning and discovering, and we do it together.”

67s

#GodSizedStories

“I'm gonna ask our prayer team to come back. Listen to me. If there's someone in this space today, listen to me closely, that has never put their faith and trust in Jesus. have found every way to reject him logically in your head. Let the Psalm hit you in your heart, and show you, and prove to you, and teach you, and guide you, that you can trust everything else in this world, and you will collapse and fall. You put your hope, your faith, and your trust in Jesus, and he will give you the strength to rise and stand. That's you today. People are here. Come put your hand in their hand. Let them talk with you. Let them pray with you. Just like Jose did on that river, maybe right now is the time. Maybe God's using something tragic for triumph. We never know what God is gonna do. I can just tell you, he's always, always, always gonna write God sized stories when we put our trust in him.”

65s

#TrustInGodAlone

“So we thought today that as we close this out, that we'd respond just like Alexis and Savannah and Maya, how Maribel has been responding, how family showed up today, thought their mom with the strength and resolve to come in and still be here would respond. How the church should respond in our times of trouble, because our trust is not in horses and chariots. Our trust is not in men and women. Our trust is not in our might, our strength, our talent, our abilities, our skill, our intellect. Our trust is in God, and we know that in the midst of pain, and heartache, and emptiness, and loss, God still is on the throne. God is still writing God's side stories. God is still on the move, and those that have gone before us, who are worshiping in the throne, around the throne of Jesus today.”

59s

#FirmFoundationInJesus

“You walked into this place, and you just joined in song like you do every week. When the rain and the wind comes, when the storms are on us. We're safe because we've been built on a firm foundation. I put my trust and hope in God and his son Jesus, I can rise and stand upright when life does not make sense. But if I think I know more than God, and I think that I don't need Jesus, then what I will do is I will put my faith and trust in myself in men and women and husbands and wives. They leave you. They're gone. Your job, your boss, your finances, and then you're left empty, and you collapse and fall, and you say, what was it for? And then you realize, it was Jesus I needed all along. Amen. My God. And I rejected him all the way through.”

41s

#GodWritesStories

“And I tell you that because it is proof and evidence that when nothing makes sense at all, God still writes God sized stories in people's lives. Lives are eternally impacted and changed. And if I was to talk with Brent, he would say, that's exactly why they were supposed to stay, and that's exactly why I was so excited about getting into that mountain. If it was for him and no one else, that's why we went.”

58s

#JesusMyRefuge

“``And only Jesus today can mend a broken heart, because that's what Psalm 34 tells us. Not me, not this church, not PJ, not any pastor. Here's what I know. I've been preaching since I was 18 years old, grew up in the church. Christianity is not at its best when everything is going well. My God. My God. It's not. I need you to hear that today. Christianity is not at its best when everything is going well. When the church is growing, when your finances are great, when the marriage seems like it's got some peace, Christianity is at its best, its greatest when everything is unraveling around you. And you know the only place I can go is Jesus, my refuge and my rock, my firm foundation.”

51s

#EyesOnJesus

“This is beautiful on earth as it is in heaven today. How Brent and and and Maribel would want it to be, and their family. If they were in this place, Alsandra's family would want it to be, and Sondra would want. don't put your eyes on me today. Put your eyes on him, and sing a song with all that you got to him, and worship him, and let him know today we trust you. God today, we do that. We rise and we stand. We proclaim and we sing. We Selah and we pause, but the song keeps going, and we keep praising.”

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Selah: When the Earth Gives Way | Psalm 20

Devotional

Day 1: When Earth Gives Way, God Hovers Over Chaos

Day 2: Selah: Pausing When the Song Isn’t Over

Day 3: Baptisms in Uncharted Rivers

Day 4: Dancing in the Valley of Shadows

Day 5: When Trust Rises from Fresh Graves

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Selah: When the Earth Gives Way | Psalm 20

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