Psalm Meditation 609
Transfiguration Sunday
February 19, 2012

Psalm 76
1 In Judah God is known, his name is great in Israel.
2 His abode has been established in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he broke the flashing arrows, the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. (Selah)
4 Glorious are you, more majestic than the everlasting mountains.
5 The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil; they sank into sleep; none of the troops was able to lift a hand.
6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both rider and horse lay stunned.
7 But you indeed are awesome! Who can stand before you when once your anger is roused?
8 From the heavens you uttered judgment; the earth feared and was still
9 when God rose up to establish judgment, to save all the oppressed of the earth. (Selah)
10 Human wrath serves only to praise you, when you bind the last bit of your wrath around you.
11 Make vows to the Lord your God, and perform them; let all who are around him bring gifts to the one who is awesome,
12 who cuts off the spirit of princes, who inspires fear in the kings of the earth.
(NRSV)

This is a victory hymn, celebrating a battle won against an enemy who would have been impossible to defeat without the help of God. While not all of us have combat experience, I imagine that each of us has some experience in which the presence of God in our lives allowed us to prevail in a situation that seemed hopeless. Whether the struggle was internal, a war within ourselves for victory of one idea over another, one life choice over another, a battle with disease or disability, or with a person, group or situation outside ourselves, we find that the outcome would have been very different without the presence of God in our conflict.

These kinds of battles tend to raise our anger level beyond normal limits. And in the cases of these kinds of victories we have been able to use our anger in a focused, positive direction. We find ourselves motivated to move in the direction we feel God is calling us, even as we face mountainous obstacles. Our anger gives us the energy to do what needs to be done and the focus to stay with it for as long as we are able, if not a bit longer. The focus and motivation direct our attention to God and the way we sense God calling us to act in this dire situation.

Whether our combat experience is in the military or not, we have had our battles with enemies and adversaries. In some of those cases we have known that God was with us, directing our lives in the choices that would lead us to prevail in some form or another. Victory is sweet. The presence of God is sweeter still. In those instances in which God is present in our victory: awesome.

© February 13, 2012