Psalm Meditation 651
Second Sunday of Advent
December 9, 2012

Psalm 144
1 Blessed be the LORD, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;
2 my rock and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues the peoples under me.
3 O LORD, what are human beings that you regard them, or mortals that you think of them?
4 They are like a breath; their days are like a passing shadow.
5 Bow your heavens, O LORD, and come down; touch the mountains so that they smoke.
6 Make the lightning flash and scatter them; send out your arrows and rout them.
7 Stretch out your hand from on high; set me free and rescue me from the mighty waters, from the hand of aliens,
8 whose mouths speak lies, and whose right hands are false.
9 I will sing a new song to you, O God; upon a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,
10 the one who gives victory to kings, who rescues his servant David.
11 Rescue me from the cruel sword, and deliver me from the hand of aliens, whose mouths speak lies, and whose right hands are false.
12 May our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, our daughters like corner pillars, cut for the building of a palace.
13 May our barns be filled, with produce of every kind; may our sheep increase by thousands, by tens of thousands in our fields,
14 and may our cattle be heavy with young. May there be no breach in the walls, no exile, and no cry of distress in our streets.
15 Happy are the people to whom such blessings fall; happy are the people whose God is the LORD.
(NRSV)

Early in ministry I was advised to pick the battles in which I was willing to die and to fight them to the death. It is a helpful reminder that not every battle is worth fighting, and that the ones worth fighting are the ones in which I am willing to give my all. I have also discovered that some battles that seemed of great importance at the beginning are not nearly as important as they seemed once the first blood has been drawn. Battle imagery makes a useful metaphor.

While the psalmist may be preparing for an actual battle with swords and real blood, we can use the battle imagery as a way of thinking about the conflicts in our lives. If this were a physical battle would I be as invested in fighting and winning as I am in a battle of wits and words? If I actually lost my life in this would it have been worth it? Am I really interested in this issue or do I like to win? Am I in this battle at the direction of God or is it an interesting distraction? These and other questions are important as we choose our battles.

Whether our battles are physical or metaphoric, it is good to know that God is with us. In some battles God gives us the strength to stand and fight, in others God gives us the sense to turn and walk away. The important part is to know that God is with us. Whether we win or lose, we are in the presence of God who loves us and blesses us in countless ways.

December 3, 2012