Psalm Meditation 533
Fifteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
September 5, 2010
Psalm 31:1-9,19-24
1 In you, O LORD, I seek refuge; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me.
2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily. Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me.
3 You are indeed my rock and my fortress; for your name's sake lead me and guide me,
4 take me out of the net that is hidden for me, for you are my refuge.
5 Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.
6 You hate those who pay regard to worthless idols, but I trust in the LORD.
7 I will exult and rejoice in your steadfast love, because you have seen my affliction; you have taken heed of my adversities,
8 and have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy; you have set my feet in a broad place.
9 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eye wastes away from grief, my soul and body also.
19 O how abundant is your goodness that you have laid up for those who fear you, and accomplished for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of everyone!
20 In the shelter of your presence you hide them from human plots; you hold them safe under your shelter from contentious tongues.
21 Blessed be the LORD, for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me when I was beset as a city under siege.
22 I had said in my alarm, "I am driven far from your sight." But you heard my supplications when I cried out to you for help.
23 Love the LORD, all you his saints. The LORD preserves the faithful, but abundantly repays the one who acts haughtily.
24 Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD.
(NRSV)
While the words from verse 5 are among those Jesus uses on the cross, my guess is that it is not the first time he had ever committed his spirit to the hand of God. Anyone who lives a life in God has committed that life to God multiple times. Every time we step out in faith to respond to the call of God in our lives we commit our spirits anew to the hand of God. When we make a sacrifice for the sake of God’s people we commit our spirits into the hand of God. When we opt for justice over comfort and convenience we commit our spirits into the hand of God. When we reach out to a person or group with the love of God we commit our spirits into the hand of God.
God does not offer us a free ride made up of lollipops and rainbows. God invites us to take risks, make sacrifices and do seemingly stupid stuff in order to build relationships with folks as people of God. By committing our spirits to God we find ourselves doing things we could not otherwise see ourselves doing. As we do those things some folks are drawn into closer relationship with God and we find ourselves moving closer and deeper into God. God offers us a journey made up of life changing risk after life changing risk.
Through it all God is with us. God gives us the courage to jump in with both feet and the ability to sense God’s presence with us in the most dire circumstances. The love of God for us and for those around us continues to give us the courage to worry less so that we confidently wait for Yahweh.
© August 30, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
Psalm Meditation 532
Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 29, 2010
Psalm 1
1 Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers;
2 but their delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law they meditate day and night.
3 They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper.
4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6 for the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
(NRSV)
There are always folks who will give advice that sounds pretty good right now and then gets more and more bitter as time goes by. As we follow advice to cheat a person or group out of something we discover that the savings in that one area are more than taken up by the loss of integrity. We may even feel pretty good about ourselves in the short term only to have the loss of honesty and integrity eat away at us until we find a way to make amends. Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the folks who counsel sacrificing integrity and honesty for the sake of a short term gain.
Those short term gains left unchecked become like an addiction that has to be fed more and more often with larger and larger doses in order to keep that original buzz. It is much better to walk away from that heady sense of success at the expense of another than to have to keep taking more and more chances with ourselves. To keep our honesty, integrity and sense of self intact we do better to delight in relationships with people and God than in amassing more and more stuff. The trees planted by streams of water have a constant source of nourishment and refreshment that keeps them healthy and strong. The folks who keep constant in meaningful relationships also find themselves nourished in deep and sustaining ways.
The wicked drain themselves in the constant seeking after things that do not finally nourish or sustain. They are weakened rather than sustained by the constant search for that next conquest. Conquests and resources do not sustain nearly as well as relationships. In relationships we discover that much of what we need is present in some form in the people with whom we surround ourselves. We can spend our time and energy going after more and more resources or we can sustain and nourish ourselves by seeking to expand and deepen our relationships with God and those around us.
© August 23, 2010
Fourteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 29, 2010
Psalm 1
1 Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers;
2 but their delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law they meditate day and night.
3 They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper.
4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6 for the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
(NRSV)
There are always folks who will give advice that sounds pretty good right now and then gets more and more bitter as time goes by. As we follow advice to cheat a person or group out of something we discover that the savings in that one area are more than taken up by the loss of integrity. We may even feel pretty good about ourselves in the short term only to have the loss of honesty and integrity eat away at us until we find a way to make amends. Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the folks who counsel sacrificing integrity and honesty for the sake of a short term gain.
Those short term gains left unchecked become like an addiction that has to be fed more and more often with larger and larger doses in order to keep that original buzz. It is much better to walk away from that heady sense of success at the expense of another than to have to keep taking more and more chances with ourselves. To keep our honesty, integrity and sense of self intact we do better to delight in relationships with people and God than in amassing more and more stuff. The trees planted by streams of water have a constant source of nourishment and refreshment that keeps them healthy and strong. The folks who keep constant in meaningful relationships also find themselves nourished in deep and sustaining ways.
The wicked drain themselves in the constant seeking after things that do not finally nourish or sustain. They are weakened rather than sustained by the constant search for that next conquest. Conquests and resources do not sustain nearly as well as relationships. In relationships we discover that much of what we need is present in some form in the people with whom we surround ourselves. We can spend our time and energy going after more and more resources or we can sustain and nourish ourselves by seeking to expand and deepen our relationships with God and those around us.
© August 23, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
Psalm Meditation 531
Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 22, 2010
Psalm 150
1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty firmament!
2 Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his surpassing greatness!
3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!
4 Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!
5 Praise him with clanging cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
6 Let everything that breathes praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
When I think of praise it is usually as a wild and noisy expression of faith. It is dancing and shouting and singing with great music that grabs my soul at its deepest part. It is a great image and I do enjoy that kind of worship from time to time. Many of my friends remind me that there are other ways to praise God than with dancing and exuberant displays of joyful faith. For that matter, as much as I enjoy experiencing that style of worship, it is not mine.
So how do those of us who don’t worship out loud praise God? Even when it does not come out in any visible way there is a well of joy from which praise comes. For some it is a deep well while for others it is more shallow. No matter the depth there is joy that leads us to praise God in some way. While the instruments and dance are obvious ways to praise God the quieter ways are not any more or any less meaningful to those of us who use them to praise God.
I imagine that one can go through the motions of praise no matter what the style of worship. Praise is not in the instruments or the dance any more than it is in the quiet stillness. Praise is in the heart and life of the folks involved. The method of praise is not nearly as important as the praise itself. It is good to praise God with music and dance. It is also good to praise God with silence and stillness. The important part is the last verse, “Let everything that breathes praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!
© August 16, 2010
Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 22, 2010
Psalm 150
1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty firmament!
2 Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his surpassing greatness!
3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!
4 Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!
5 Praise him with clanging cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
6 Let everything that breathes praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
When I think of praise it is usually as a wild and noisy expression of faith. It is dancing and shouting and singing with great music that grabs my soul at its deepest part. It is a great image and I do enjoy that kind of worship from time to time. Many of my friends remind me that there are other ways to praise God than with dancing and exuberant displays of joyful faith. For that matter, as much as I enjoy experiencing that style of worship, it is not mine.
So how do those of us who don’t worship out loud praise God? Even when it does not come out in any visible way there is a well of joy from which praise comes. For some it is a deep well while for others it is more shallow. No matter the depth there is joy that leads us to praise God in some way. While the instruments and dance are obvious ways to praise God the quieter ways are not any more or any less meaningful to those of us who use them to praise God.
I imagine that one can go through the motions of praise no matter what the style of worship. Praise is not in the instruments or the dance any more than it is in the quiet stillness. Praise is in the heart and life of the folks involved. The method of praise is not nearly as important as the praise itself. It is good to praise God with music and dance. It is also good to praise God with silence and stillness. The important part is the last verse, “Let everything that breathes praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!
© August 16, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Psalm Meditation 530
Twelfth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 15, 2010
Psalm 125
1 Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people, from this time on and forevermore.
3 For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous might not stretch out their hands to do wrong.
4 Do good, O LORD, to those who are good, and to those who are upright in their hearts.
5 But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways the LORD will lead away with evildoers. Peace be upon Israel!
(NRSV)
In biblical times and for some people today, God rewards goodness and punishes evil. So, if you are sick or you lose your job or things aren’t going well for you it is because God is mad at you and probably for something you did that was upsetting to God. As far as the health of the nation, that all depends on the goodness or wickedness of the leader. If the economy is good and the nation is at peace all must be right between God and the ruler. If the nation is doing badly in the current war and the economy is suffering it must be that God is upset with the current ruler.
While this is a comforting solution it does fly in the face of a God who chooses to love us no matter what. If it all comes down to our actions relative to the will of God for us we can always find actions to support our viewpoint. God has ample reason to be both pleased and annoyed by any person, group or nation to justify a perception of God’s wrath or favor. There is a place for personal responsibility for our actions summed up in the idea that we are punished by our sin more than we are punished for our sin. There is also a strong place for God actively and constantly seeking to draw us into ever deeper relationship.
As we concentrate on things that lead us away from the will and way of God we are less open to recognize the presence of God in our lives. As we are less aware of God’s presence our choices become more limited and less lofty. We find ourselves looking out for a limited and homogenous group of concerns and people. Through it all, God continues to love us and to invite us to make broader and deeper choices that lead to wholesome relationships and to a deep and abiding peace with God, others and within ourselves.
© August 9, 2010
Twelfth Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 15, 2010
Psalm 125
1 Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people, from this time on and forevermore.
3 For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous might not stretch out their hands to do wrong.
4 Do good, O LORD, to those who are good, and to those who are upright in their hearts.
5 But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways the LORD will lead away with evildoers. Peace be upon Israel!
(NRSV)
In biblical times and for some people today, God rewards goodness and punishes evil. So, if you are sick or you lose your job or things aren’t going well for you it is because God is mad at you and probably for something you did that was upsetting to God. As far as the health of the nation, that all depends on the goodness or wickedness of the leader. If the economy is good and the nation is at peace all must be right between God and the ruler. If the nation is doing badly in the current war and the economy is suffering it must be that God is upset with the current ruler.
While this is a comforting solution it does fly in the face of a God who chooses to love us no matter what. If it all comes down to our actions relative to the will of God for us we can always find actions to support our viewpoint. God has ample reason to be both pleased and annoyed by any person, group or nation to justify a perception of God’s wrath or favor. There is a place for personal responsibility for our actions summed up in the idea that we are punished by our sin more than we are punished for our sin. There is also a strong place for God actively and constantly seeking to draw us into ever deeper relationship.
As we concentrate on things that lead us away from the will and way of God we are less open to recognize the presence of God in our lives. As we are less aware of God’s presence our choices become more limited and less lofty. We find ourselves looking out for a limited and homogenous group of concerns and people. Through it all, God continues to love us and to invite us to make broader and deeper choices that lead to wholesome relationships and to a deep and abiding peace with God, others and within ourselves.
© August 9, 2010
Monday, August 2, 2010
Psalm Meditation 529
Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 8, 2010
Psalm 100
1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.
5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
(NRSV)
Traditional worship services and those of us who attend them are not usually filled with expressions of joyfulness. For that matter many congregations discourage anything too wild as far as outward display of emotion. That does not mean that folks in worship are as joyless and sour as we are sometimes painted. Some folks are joyless and sour to be sure, however many of us in worship are filled with joy and exuberance that we keep carefully tucked just under the surface.
We are glad to be in the presence of God and we are glad to be gathered with the people around us. We continue to gather together because these people continue to have a place in our hearts. Yes, there are some with whom we disagree on many things and yes, we miss them when they are absent for any reason. We find that we are a part of a family, a group that stretches our image of the kind of people with whom we get along.
In the midst of all the human faults and failings we bring together into our worship gatherings we discover the steadfast love of God. That love touches us, restores us, rekindles in us the awareness of the presence of God in our lives. We may feel as if we are gathering with reluctance or resentment even as we continue to gather into the presence of God on a regular basis. We allow ourselves to be reminded that God loves us as we are and that God faithfully stands with us in every part of life.
Enter the presence of God with joy, thanksgiving and praise. Some will make a joyful noise while the rest of us will feel the joy bubbling just under the surface in our worship.
© August 2, 2010
Eleventh Sunday of Ordinary Time
August 8, 2010
Psalm 100
1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.
5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
(NRSV)
Traditional worship services and those of us who attend them are not usually filled with expressions of joyfulness. For that matter many congregations discourage anything too wild as far as outward display of emotion. That does not mean that folks in worship are as joyless and sour as we are sometimes painted. Some folks are joyless and sour to be sure, however many of us in worship are filled with joy and exuberance that we keep carefully tucked just under the surface.
We are glad to be in the presence of God and we are glad to be gathered with the people around us. We continue to gather together because these people continue to have a place in our hearts. Yes, there are some with whom we disagree on many things and yes, we miss them when they are absent for any reason. We find that we are a part of a family, a group that stretches our image of the kind of people with whom we get along.
In the midst of all the human faults and failings we bring together into our worship gatherings we discover the steadfast love of God. That love touches us, restores us, rekindles in us the awareness of the presence of God in our lives. We may feel as if we are gathering with reluctance or resentment even as we continue to gather into the presence of God on a regular basis. We allow ourselves to be reminded that God loves us as we are and that God faithfully stands with us in every part of life.
Enter the presence of God with joy, thanksgiving and praise. Some will make a joyful noise while the rest of us will feel the joy bubbling just under the surface in our worship.
© August 2, 2010
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