Fun fact: the author of these Psalms is David’s music director! He was also Solomon’s and if you want more history here’s a link. http://www.hfbcbiblestudy.org/
In the first part of Psalm 79, Asaph is bemoaning the world’s hatred of God’s people. The way he’s describing it hits home about how a lot of the populace feels about the Christian community. And somehow we still get verse 9. He’s still ready to get out into the world and do some good as one of God’s people. Most people find this hard to do when the world is against them but Asaph is ready for it. Sure he’s talking about God helping them vanquish our enemies, but historical context– that was the world they lived in especially as a historically repressed people. But we live in a different time with a different covenant, so what does our Christian presence in the world where a lot of people look down on us look like?
I find Psalm 80 refreshing. It’s so easy to feel discouraged about the strength of your faith when you hear these Psalms written by David or the Sons of Korah where no matter how discouraged or annoyed they are, they always end their Psalms in praise. It’s not to see that at least some big name in David’s empire doesn’t have to end in praise. Moral of this blurb, it’s okay to be in a place where we really need help and don’t quite feel like praising God.