The psalm is full of laughter and joy. God has done great things, the people sing, and they're filled with gladness. But it's told as a kind of reversal narrative. When God restored the fortunes of Zion, it seemed like a dream. It's as if they can't quite believe good things are happening after long struggle.
I love that the psalm includes both the ancient memory and a prayer for the future. Restore our fortunes again, the people ask, like bringing streams to the desert. They're asking God to do it again, fully knowing that joy has been interrupted before and can be again.
What strikes me is that this isn't naive optimism. It's joy held lightly, with memory of hard seasons. The people who laugh the fullest are often those who've cried the hardest. They understand that good seasons don't last forever, and so they laugh and celebrate and plant seeds even while asking God for continued provision. It's a way of living in hope without being brittle about it.
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