Psalm Meditation 763
Fourth Sunday After Epiphany
February 1, 2015
Psalm 114
1 When Israel went out from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,
2 Judah became God’s sanctuary, Israel his dominion.
3 The sea looked and fled; Jordan turned back.
4 The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs.
5 Why is it, O sea, that you flee? O Jordan, that you turn back?
6 O mountains, that you skip like rams? O hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the LORD, at the presence of the God of Jacob,
8 who turns the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a spring of water.
(NRSV)
When a champion rises for us, we jump and shout with joy and ‘they’ run away in fear. So it is when the God of Israel rises to lead the people out of Egypt. Rivers and seas are symbols of chaos, violence, the uncontrollable forces of our lives. The chaos and lack of control disappear in the presence of God, since the one who created them now stands with us against them.
The mountains and hills, like God, provide places of security and refuge; those places join all those of us who rejoice in the presence of God. It is hard to skip without smiling, once you master the skill, and it seems to bring a smile to the faces of those around you as they catch a glimpse of the rejoicing that seems to be a part of the process of skipping.
Find a reason, an excuse, a way to join in the rejoicing that God is with us, standing against the forces of violence and chaos in our stead. For some of us it will be more difficult than for others as those forces are more present and active around us. A glimmer of hope, the hint of a smile, a short skip down an empty hall can serve to remind us that, though things seem to be heavy and dark we are in the presence of God.
January 26, 2015
LCM
Monday, January 26, 2015
Monday, January 19, 2015
Psalm Meditation 762
Third Sunday After Epiphany
January 25, 2015
Psalm 37 (selected verses)
1 Do not fret because of the wicked; do not be envious of wrongdoers,
2 for they will soon fade like the grass, and wither like the green herb.
3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.
4 Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will make your vindication shine like the light, and the justice of your cause like the noonday.
7 Be still before the LORD, and wait patiently for him; do not fret over those who prosper in their way, over those who carry out evil devices.
8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret—it leads only to evil.
9 For the wicked shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look diligently for their place, they will not be there.
11 But the meek shall inherit the land, and delight themselves in abundant prosperity.
12 The wicked plot against the righteous, and gnash their teeth at them;
13 but the LORD laughs at the wicked, for he sees that their day is coming.
14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows to bring down the poor and needy, to kill those who walk uprightly;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.
16 Better is a little that the righteous person has than the abundance of many wicked.
39 The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; he is their refuge in the time of trouble.
40 The LORD helps them and rescues them; he rescues them from the wicked, and saves them, because they take refuge in him.
(NRSV)
It can be unnerving to meet someone who does not spend a lot of time and energy fretting over the lives of those around them. They carry a sense of contentment with them that has the potential of being contagious. As if they have a disease we distance ourselves from them. We don’t mind being around them, we simply don’t want to get close enough to catch that sense of ease with the world. It is so foreign to us that it is discomforting. To be honest we find ourselves fretting over their lack of fretting.
It is as if they have done something wrong, to be content with their lot in the presence of God. These folks spend more energy cultivating relationships with God and with the people around them than they do in competing for a larger piece of the pie. They live as if they have enough, no matter how much or how little it may be. I know folks who have, what to me is, lots of money. They don’t make a big deal of it. They don’t flaunt it or make me feel like a lesser person because I don’t have what they have. I also know folks who have more than I who are always grasping for more. They have relationships in order to open and close more deals. I am often made aware of my lack of money and stuff in their presence. I prefer the company of those who are content.
The psalmist lets us know that money and stuff don’t last as well or as long as relationships. All the resources will be disbursed to others at some point in the near future while the relationships continue in some form for generations. God invites us into relationships that lead to wholeness for us and others. Money and stuff are nice to have, however they are not the source of happiness or contentment. Happiness and contentment come as we build a solid foundation of loving relationships with a wide variety of folks in the presence of God
January 19, 2015
LCM
Third Sunday After Epiphany
January 25, 2015
Psalm 37 (selected verses)
1 Do not fret because of the wicked; do not be envious of wrongdoers,
2 for they will soon fade like the grass, and wither like the green herb.
3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.
4 Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will make your vindication shine like the light, and the justice of your cause like the noonday.
7 Be still before the LORD, and wait patiently for him; do not fret over those who prosper in their way, over those who carry out evil devices.
8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret—it leads only to evil.
9 For the wicked shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look diligently for their place, they will not be there.
11 But the meek shall inherit the land, and delight themselves in abundant prosperity.
12 The wicked plot against the righteous, and gnash their teeth at them;
13 but the LORD laughs at the wicked, for he sees that their day is coming.
14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows to bring down the poor and needy, to kill those who walk uprightly;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.
16 Better is a little that the righteous person has than the abundance of many wicked.
39 The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; he is their refuge in the time of trouble.
40 The LORD helps them and rescues them; he rescues them from the wicked, and saves them, because they take refuge in him.
(NRSV)
It can be unnerving to meet someone who does not spend a lot of time and energy fretting over the lives of those around them. They carry a sense of contentment with them that has the potential of being contagious. As if they have a disease we distance ourselves from them. We don’t mind being around them, we simply don’t want to get close enough to catch that sense of ease with the world. It is so foreign to us that it is discomforting. To be honest we find ourselves fretting over their lack of fretting.
It is as if they have done something wrong, to be content with their lot in the presence of God. These folks spend more energy cultivating relationships with God and with the people around them than they do in competing for a larger piece of the pie. They live as if they have enough, no matter how much or how little it may be. I know folks who have, what to me is, lots of money. They don’t make a big deal of it. They don’t flaunt it or make me feel like a lesser person because I don’t have what they have. I also know folks who have more than I who are always grasping for more. They have relationships in order to open and close more deals. I am often made aware of my lack of money and stuff in their presence. I prefer the company of those who are content.
The psalmist lets us know that money and stuff don’t last as well or as long as relationships. All the resources will be disbursed to others at some point in the near future while the relationships continue in some form for generations. God invites us into relationships that lead to wholeness for us and others. Money and stuff are nice to have, however they are not the source of happiness or contentment. Happiness and contentment come as we build a solid foundation of loving relationships with a wide variety of folks in the presence of God
January 19, 2015
LCM
Monday, January 12, 2015
Psalm Meditation 761
Second Sunday After Epiphany
January 18, 2015
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
One of the important questions we ask as we get to know each other is, ‘Where are you from?’ Despite the suspect grammar of ending a sentence with a preposition, it is an important bit of information. It gives us a locale, a way to place someone in the world we know. In this mobile society, some of us name an area instead of a city or town while others can tell us where they were born, all the places they have lived and which one feels most like home. No matter how much we may have moved around in our lives, we too long for a place to call home.
For the psalmist, place is very important. To be able to claim Zion as one’s place of birth is to be firmly rooted in God, in body, in spirit and in place. Zion is the mount on which the central city was built. To have been born there gives one a very important place in the life of the community and an identity in the world at large. Zion is a location in geography as well as a location in heritage and ritual. To have been born in Zion is to have been born at the closest place to the heart of God.
Whether our place is one of geography or of some other type of identifier, we each have a place that feels like home. I understand that the Greek word translated as kingdom or realm, can mean a physical place as well as a sense of loyalty. One can thus be a part of the realm of God by being within the set bounds of some geographic limits or one can be a part of the realm of God by having a heart and life that says, “All my springs are in you.”
January 12, 2015
LCM
Second Sunday After Epiphany
January 18, 2015
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
One of the important questions we ask as we get to know each other is, ‘Where are you from?’ Despite the suspect grammar of ending a sentence with a preposition, it is an important bit of information. It gives us a locale, a way to place someone in the world we know. In this mobile society, some of us name an area instead of a city or town while others can tell us where they were born, all the places they have lived and which one feels most like home. No matter how much we may have moved around in our lives, we too long for a place to call home.
For the psalmist, place is very important. To be able to claim Zion as one’s place of birth is to be firmly rooted in God, in body, in spirit and in place. Zion is the mount on which the central city was built. To have been born there gives one a very important place in the life of the community and an identity in the world at large. Zion is a location in geography as well as a location in heritage and ritual. To have been born in Zion is to have been born at the closest place to the heart of God.
Whether our place is one of geography or of some other type of identifier, we each have a place that feels like home. I understand that the Greek word translated as kingdom or realm, can mean a physical place as well as a sense of loyalty. One can thus be a part of the realm of God by being within the set bounds of some geographic limits or one can be a part of the realm of God by having a heart and life that says, “All my springs are in you.”
January 12, 2015
LCM
Monday, January 5, 2015
Psalm Meditation 760
Baptism of the Lord
January 11, 2015
Psalm 14
1 Fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is no one who does good.
2 The LORD looks down from heaven on humankind to see if there are any who are wise, who seek after God.
3 They have all gone astray, they are all alike perverse; there is no one who does good, no, not one.
4 Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon the LORD?
5 There they shall be in great terror, for God is with the company of the righteous.
6 You would confound the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge.
7 O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion! When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people, Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.
(NRSV)
Current thinking in some circles is that we somehow deserve our lot in life. If you are poor, you have done something to get yourself there. If you are rich you deserve to be rich. If you are somewhere in between you have done something to get yourself to where you are today. It falls to each of us to make our own economic way. This system works well when we are talking about ’you,’ someone other than ’me’ or ’us.’ Once we make the conversation personal we realize that there are factors that are out of our control. There are others whose concerns do not include our well-being, who nonetheless have some say over our economic status.
Looking up from the viewpoint of poverty we wish someone was there to give us something to grab so that we could pull ourselves out of the situation in which we find ourselves. We hear the words of Deuteronomy 15:11, “Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, “Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.” “ as a reminder to those who have stuff to share with those of us who are currently without. We don’t need to be coddled so much as assisted in some useful, helpful way.
The psalmist reminds us that the people of God look out for each other. We don’t blame or accuse those who have any more than we blame or accuse those who don’t. We recognize that God is not nearly as concerned with how much stuff we have, as with how we use what we do have. Do we use our resources to help those in need or do we use our stuff to feather our own nests? For the psalmist, the way to go is to help each other. We can open our hand to the poor so that folks will then help us in the event of a reversal of fortune, or we can open our hand because it is the right thing to do.
January 5, 2015
LCM
Baptism of the Lord
January 11, 2015
Psalm 14
1 Fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is no one who does good.
2 The LORD looks down from heaven on humankind to see if there are any who are wise, who seek after God.
3 They have all gone astray, they are all alike perverse; there is no one who does good, no, not one.
4 Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon the LORD?
5 There they shall be in great terror, for God is with the company of the righteous.
6 You would confound the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge.
7 O that deliverance for Israel would come from Zion! When the LORD restores the fortunes of his people, Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.
(NRSV)
Current thinking in some circles is that we somehow deserve our lot in life. If you are poor, you have done something to get yourself there. If you are rich you deserve to be rich. If you are somewhere in between you have done something to get yourself to where you are today. It falls to each of us to make our own economic way. This system works well when we are talking about ’you,’ someone other than ’me’ or ’us.’ Once we make the conversation personal we realize that there are factors that are out of our control. There are others whose concerns do not include our well-being, who nonetheless have some say over our economic status.
Looking up from the viewpoint of poverty we wish someone was there to give us something to grab so that we could pull ourselves out of the situation in which we find ourselves. We hear the words of Deuteronomy 15:11, “Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, “Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.” “ as a reminder to those who have stuff to share with those of us who are currently without. We don’t need to be coddled so much as assisted in some useful, helpful way.
The psalmist reminds us that the people of God look out for each other. We don’t blame or accuse those who have any more than we blame or accuse those who don’t. We recognize that God is not nearly as concerned with how much stuff we have, as with how we use what we do have. Do we use our resources to help those in need or do we use our stuff to feather our own nests? For the psalmist, the way to go is to help each other. We can open our hand to the poor so that folks will then help us in the event of a reversal of fortune, or we can open our hand because it is the right thing to do.
January 5, 2015
LCM
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)