Psalm Meditation 474
Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time
July 26, 2009

Psalm 91
1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
2 will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust."
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence;
4 he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day,
6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the LORD your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place,
10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.
15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them.
16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.
(NRSV)

Experience shows that those who live in the presence of God are at least as likely to suffer as those who avoid God. It may be because people of God tend to go intentionally into places in which there is suffering and pestilence in order to be of service to those who were in the midst of it from the beginning. In those situations it is likely that the people of God have little awareness of their personal danger because their focus is on others. They are in just as much danger, however the presence of God acts as a shield to their noticing the danger.

We know that good people and bad people suffer and die on a daily basis. We also know that those who live in the presence of God do not dwell on their mortality, living as if there is more to life than flesh and blood. Building relationships with others and building bridges of relationship between God and others is much more consuming than the preservation of one’s personal life. So, yes, we will suffer and die in numbers similar to those who do not live in an awareness of the presence of God. It will not be a chief consideration in anything that we do. Knowing that we have a relationship with God that goes beyond this life sets us free to charge in when others are suffering.

The presence of God in our lives calls us, leads us, invites us to go places and do things that others would not even consider. God does not seem to pull us out of harm’s way near as often as God gives us the wherewithal to go into situations with the needs of others foremost in our hearts and minds. Yes, we take care of ourselves and give thought to personal health and safety all while looking to the pressing needs of others. Through it all we carry with us an awareness of the overarching presence of God.

© July 20, 2009