Psalm Meditation 680
Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 30, 2013
Psalm 120
1 In my distress I cry to the LORD, that he may answer me:
2 “Deliver me, O LORD, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.”
3 What shall be given to you? And what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue?
4 A warrior’s sharp arrows, with glowing coals of the broom tree!
5 Woe is me, that I am an alien in Meshech, that I must live among the tents of Kedar.
6 Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace.
7 I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war.
(NRSV)
Many of us have moments in which we feel we do not belong among the people who make up our lives, including our own families. We begin to feel alienated from all we have previously known and held dear. What we want appears to be the opposite of what all the folks around us desire. At the very least, the psalmist lets us know that we are neither the first nor the only to ever feel set apart by conflicting belief systems with those around us.
The psalmist also reminds us that there is a place for us among the people of God. Certainly not that we will always agree with those around us, however we do have an assurance that we are in a place in which honesty is more highly prized than conformity. At the same time, because we are in a relationship with God and the people of God, we do well to prize loving honesty over brutal honesty; to temper our honesty with a concern for the well-being of others.
At times, each of us will feel alone in a particular thought, belief or desired course of action, even among those we love. Some of us will find ourselves in situations in which we are resident aliens, to use the biblical phrase, among people with whom we do not agree on any number of questions. Being in the minority does not make us wrong any more than it makes us right. Know that God is with us and that we are not as alone as it may seem.
June 24, 2013
Monday, June 24, 2013
Monday, June 17, 2013
Psalm Meditation 679
Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 23, 2013
Psalm 90
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn us back to dust, and say, “Turn back, you mortals.”
4 For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep them away; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning;
6 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.
7 For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed.
8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; our years come to an end like a sigh.
10 The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong;
even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11 Who considers the power of your anger? Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.
13 Turn, O LORD! How long? Have compassion on your servants!
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us, and as many years as we have seen evil.
16 Let your work be manifest to your servants, and your glorious power to their children.
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands—O prosper the work of our hands!
(NRSV)
One of the worst parts about knowing that something is going to end is that we spend so much time worrying about when and how that might be that we forget to enjoy it as it happens. Those of us who worry too much about when and how are the ones who read the last couple of pages of a book to see how it is going to end. It lets us decide if we want to keep reading, it opens some of the secrets of the action. In one sense it lets us relax since we know how it is going to end. In another sense it takes some of the wonder and expectation out of it simply because we know too much about where it is going. Knowing that there will be an end also sets us up to be disappointed when we come to the place in which we ask the question, “is that all?”
One of the best parts about knowing that something is going to end is that it becomes very precious to us and we find joy in treasuring each moment. Eating an ice cream cone is a delicate balance between savoring each delicious taste and getting it all eaten before it melts away completely. If we eat too fast we take the risk of ‘brain freeze.’ If we eat too slow we run the risk of having it melt down to nothing without us. Done well, we can continue to savor the tastes and moments of that ice cream and cone even after it is actually finished.
With the psalmist, we have some idea that there is more to the story. We know that life is filled with moments of despair, illness, pain and any number of bad and terrible things. We also know that there are moments of deep and abiding joy, that there are relationships to treasure long after the day to day parts of them are past, that how we look at something can determine whether it is finally good or not. We know that God is the final victor without giving away all the surprises, even as we go through each of the moments that make up our lives.
June 17, 2013
Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 23, 2013
Psalm 90
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn us back to dust, and say, “Turn back, you mortals.”
4 For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night.
5 You sweep them away; they are like a dream, like grass that is renewed in the morning;
6 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers.
7 For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed.
8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; our years come to an end like a sigh.
10 The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong;
even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.
11 Who considers the power of your anger? Your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.
12 So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.
13 Turn, O LORD! How long? Have compassion on your servants!
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us, and as many years as we have seen evil.
16 Let your work be manifest to your servants, and your glorious power to their children.
17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands—O prosper the work of our hands!
(NRSV)
One of the worst parts about knowing that something is going to end is that we spend so much time worrying about when and how that might be that we forget to enjoy it as it happens. Those of us who worry too much about when and how are the ones who read the last couple of pages of a book to see how it is going to end. It lets us decide if we want to keep reading, it opens some of the secrets of the action. In one sense it lets us relax since we know how it is going to end. In another sense it takes some of the wonder and expectation out of it simply because we know too much about where it is going. Knowing that there will be an end also sets us up to be disappointed when we come to the place in which we ask the question, “is that all?”
One of the best parts about knowing that something is going to end is that it becomes very precious to us and we find joy in treasuring each moment. Eating an ice cream cone is a delicate balance between savoring each delicious taste and getting it all eaten before it melts away completely. If we eat too fast we take the risk of ‘brain freeze.’ If we eat too slow we run the risk of having it melt down to nothing without us. Done well, we can continue to savor the tastes and moments of that ice cream and cone even after it is actually finished.
With the psalmist, we have some idea that there is more to the story. We know that life is filled with moments of despair, illness, pain and any number of bad and terrible things. We also know that there are moments of deep and abiding joy, that there are relationships to treasure long after the day to day parts of them are past, that how we look at something can determine whether it is finally good or not. We know that God is the final victor without giving away all the surprises, even as we go through each of the moments that make up our lives.
June 17, 2013
Monday, June 10, 2013
Psalm Meditation 678
Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 16, 2013
Psalm 60
1 O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses; you have been angry; now restore us!
2 You have caused the land to quake; you have torn it open; repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.
3 You have made your people suffer hard things; you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.
4 You have set up a banner for those who fear you, to rally to it out of bowshot. Selah
5 Give victory with your right hand, and answer us, so that those whom you love may be rescued.
6 God has promised in his sanctuary: “With exultation I will divide up Shechem, and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
7 Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet; Judah is my scepter.
8 Moab is my washbasin; on Edom I hurl my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
9 Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?
10 Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
11 O grant us help against the foe, for human help is worthless.
12 With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.
(NRSV)
I have been wondering which is the more accurate description of the sense of abandonment we feel outside the presence of God. Does God actually walk away from us, reject us, as was the thinking of the psalmist and folks of that age, or do we walk away from God and at some point feel the distance between us? The best answer seems to be that it doesn’t matter who walks away, the sense of distance, rejection and abandonment are the same. And even if it is God who walks away, it is due to some infidelity to God on our part.
Whoever it is who walked away, God is more than ready to reconnect in the relationship when we decide it is what we want. Just as God does not force us into the relationship in the first place, God does not force us to return to a relationship when it has been torn open. While the psalmist is concerned over a military conflict, asking God to return to the battle, we are more often concerned with the day to day conflicts between right and wrong.
If only the battles over right and wrong had a clear delineation of which is which. In our daily conflicts there are compelling yet competing priorities on every side. We each believe our own side has the proper priorities and worldview or we would not have chosen that side in the first place. In any case, it is important to align ourselves with the priorities we believe come from God and to have a willingness to change our hearts and minds as we sense that we may have misunderstood what it is that is important to God.
June 10, 2013
Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 16, 2013
Psalm 60
1 O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses; you have been angry; now restore us!
2 You have caused the land to quake; you have torn it open; repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.
3 You have made your people suffer hard things; you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.
4 You have set up a banner for those who fear you, to rally to it out of bowshot. Selah
5 Give victory with your right hand, and answer us, so that those whom you love may be rescued.
6 God has promised in his sanctuary: “With exultation I will divide up Shechem, and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
7 Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet; Judah is my scepter.
8 Moab is my washbasin; on Edom I hurl my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
9 Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?
10 Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
11 O grant us help against the foe, for human help is worthless.
12 With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.
(NRSV)
I have been wondering which is the more accurate description of the sense of abandonment we feel outside the presence of God. Does God actually walk away from us, reject us, as was the thinking of the psalmist and folks of that age, or do we walk away from God and at some point feel the distance between us? The best answer seems to be that it doesn’t matter who walks away, the sense of distance, rejection and abandonment are the same. And even if it is God who walks away, it is due to some infidelity to God on our part.
Whoever it is who walked away, God is more than ready to reconnect in the relationship when we decide it is what we want. Just as God does not force us into the relationship in the first place, God does not force us to return to a relationship when it has been torn open. While the psalmist is concerned over a military conflict, asking God to return to the battle, we are more often concerned with the day to day conflicts between right and wrong.
If only the battles over right and wrong had a clear delineation of which is which. In our daily conflicts there are compelling yet competing priorities on every side. We each believe our own side has the proper priorities and worldview or we would not have chosen that side in the first place. In any case, it is important to align ourselves with the priorities we believe come from God and to have a willingness to change our hearts and minds as we sense that we may have misunderstood what it is that is important to God.
June 10, 2013
Monday, June 3, 2013
Psalm Meditation 677
Third Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 9, 2013
Psalm 30
1 I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up, and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me.
3 O LORD, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.
4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.
6 As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.”
7 By your favor, O LORD, you had established me as a strong mountain;
you hid your face; I was dismayed.
8 To you, O LORD, I cried, and to the LORD I made supplication:
9 “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness?
10 Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me! O LORD, be my helper!”
11 You have turned my mourning into dancing;
you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
12 so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever.
(NRSV)
There are life events, good and bad, that define who we are in a lot of ways. According to the psalmist, one of the ways those events define us is through the relationships that see us through those life events. The psalmist discovered that it is not health or prosperity that get us through the day. Health and prosperity come and go without much warning. What gets the psalmist through the trials of life is a relationship with God.
For folks in the psalmist’s day, good things happened because of God’s favor and bad things happened because of God’s anger with them. It is still tempting to allow the passing thought that good things are a reward for faithful action and bad things are punishment for some lapse of faithfulness on our part. I find much more comfort in believing that God is with us in all these events, good and bad. As people of free will we make choices that have consequences. Some of those are good and some are bad; both the choice and consequence. There are times in which we also receive the consequences of the actions of others through no responsibility of our own. One of the best ways to weather the good, bad and in-between of life is through strong relationships.
Even for the psalmist, who believes that God causes good and bad things, a relationship with God is an important part of life. Believing that God is with us through thick and thin, good and bad is important for us as well. We will suffer and celebrate, grieve and rejoice, so a set of strong relationships makes those times more bearable. The psalmist went through adversity, prosperity, loss and illness with an assurance of the presence of God in each one of those times. The psalmist invites us to join in praise and thanks forever.
June 3, 2013
Third Sunday of Ordinary Time
June 9, 2013
Psalm 30
1 I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up, and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O LORD my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me.
3 O LORD, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.
4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.
6 As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.”
7 By your favor, O LORD, you had established me as a strong mountain;
you hid your face; I was dismayed.
8 To you, O LORD, I cried, and to the LORD I made supplication:
9 “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness?
10 Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me! O LORD, be my helper!”
11 You have turned my mourning into dancing;
you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
12 so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever.
(NRSV)
There are life events, good and bad, that define who we are in a lot of ways. According to the psalmist, one of the ways those events define us is through the relationships that see us through those life events. The psalmist discovered that it is not health or prosperity that get us through the day. Health and prosperity come and go without much warning. What gets the psalmist through the trials of life is a relationship with God.
For folks in the psalmist’s day, good things happened because of God’s favor and bad things happened because of God’s anger with them. It is still tempting to allow the passing thought that good things are a reward for faithful action and bad things are punishment for some lapse of faithfulness on our part. I find much more comfort in believing that God is with us in all these events, good and bad. As people of free will we make choices that have consequences. Some of those are good and some are bad; both the choice and consequence. There are times in which we also receive the consequences of the actions of others through no responsibility of our own. One of the best ways to weather the good, bad and in-between of life is through strong relationships.
Even for the psalmist, who believes that God causes good and bad things, a relationship with God is an important part of life. Believing that God is with us through thick and thin, good and bad is important for us as well. We will suffer and celebrate, grieve and rejoice, so a set of strong relationships makes those times more bearable. The psalmist went through adversity, prosperity, loss and illness with an assurance of the presence of God in each one of those times. The psalmist invites us to join in praise and thanks forever.
June 3, 2013
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)