Psalm Meditation 863
Second Sunday of Christmas
January 1, 2016
Psalm 139
1 O LORD, you have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away.
3 You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue, O LORD, you know it completely.
5 You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it.
7 Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,”
12 even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.
13 For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance. In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed.
17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand; I come to the end—I am still with you.
19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God, and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me—
20 those who speak of you maliciously, and lift themselves up against you for evil!
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts.
24 See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
(NRSV)
Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone in the world was like you, me, and Mary Poppins, “practically perfect in every way.” Life would be so much easier if it weren’t for all those pesky ‘others’ who do terrible things like disagree with us and cause us all manner of discomfort as we attempt to reconcile their humanity and condition as a child of God with the fact that they are wrong. It is as if there might be alternative routes to God and the fulfilling of God’s will in our lives. And it is likely true that you and I disagree on something that is important to at least one of us, ruining the vision of perfection with which we started.
I like the idea of our religious journey being like a bicycle wheel. The spokes come in from points all over the outer rim to the center hub. While we appear to be heading in different directions our goal is the same. Imagine a bicycle wheel with only one spoke to see what a problem it is for us all to be on the same path. As annoying as they can be, we need those who are traveling other routes to support us in our journey to the center point of God’s abiding presence.
We may not be at war with all those whose camps face ours. And our fight may not be with those against whom we are now fighting. It may be that our battle imagery is completely off course. What if our task is to learn from those with whom we disagree rather than to annihilate them with our weapons and tactics, our words and actions.
December 27, 2016
LCM
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Monday, December 19, 2016
Psalm Meditation 862
Christmas Day
December 25, 2016
Psalm 12
1 Help, O LORD, for there is no longer anyone who is godly; the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
2 They utter lies to each other; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail; our lips are our own—who is our master?”
5 “Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan, I will now rise up,” says the LORD; “I will place them in the safety for which they long.”
6 The promises of the LORD are promises that are pure, silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.
7 You, O LORD, will protect us; you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among humankind.
(NRSV)
When the announcement is made that a skilled athlete is to become the highest paid player in the league, in the sport or in the world there is a hue and cry from folks that no one is worth that kind of money. When a CEO is given a salary package in the millions of dollars there is the same hue and cry about that. There are also rationalizations for that kind of money being paid in those arenas. The important part is that some person or group is willing to pay that amount for the skills and expertise of the recipient.
When it is discovered that there are folks who cannot get by on the money they are being paid there is a hue and cry about that from folks as well. There is also the rationalization that these folks have done something to deserve this kind of wage. We come up with the same kinds of reasons we use to explain the salaries of athletes and CEOs. It is the fault/responsibility of the poor person. These folks deserve to be poor for personal rather than systemic reasons.
The psalmist reminds us that God is one who complains about the wages of the poor, and about the systems that keep folks in poverty no matter what the reason. God looks on the plight of the poor and stands in judgment against those of us who do not think of the poor and the ways we can bring justice to the economic system in which we all live and work.
December 19, 2016
LCM
Christmas Day
December 25, 2016
Psalm 12
1 Help, O LORD, for there is no longer anyone who is godly; the faithful have disappeared from humankind.
2 They utter lies to each other; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongues we will prevail; our lips are our own—who is our master?”
5 “Because the poor are despoiled, because the needy groan, I will now rise up,” says the LORD; “I will place them in the safety for which they long.”
6 The promises of the LORD are promises that are pure, silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.
7 You, O LORD, will protect us; you will guard us from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among humankind.
(NRSV)
When the announcement is made that a skilled athlete is to become the highest paid player in the league, in the sport or in the world there is a hue and cry from folks that no one is worth that kind of money. When a CEO is given a salary package in the millions of dollars there is the same hue and cry about that. There are also rationalizations for that kind of money being paid in those arenas. The important part is that some person or group is willing to pay that amount for the skills and expertise of the recipient.
When it is discovered that there are folks who cannot get by on the money they are being paid there is a hue and cry about that from folks as well. There is also the rationalization that these folks have done something to deserve this kind of wage. We come up with the same kinds of reasons we use to explain the salaries of athletes and CEOs. It is the fault/responsibility of the poor person. These folks deserve to be poor for personal rather than systemic reasons.
The psalmist reminds us that God is one who complains about the wages of the poor, and about the systems that keep folks in poverty no matter what the reason. God looks on the plight of the poor and stands in judgment against those of us who do not think of the poor and the ways we can bring justice to the economic system in which we all live and work.
December 19, 2016
LCM
Monday, December 12, 2016
Psalm Meditation 861
Fourth Sunday of Advent
December 18, 2016
Psalm 41
1 Happy are those who consider the poor; the LORD delivers them in the day of trouble.
2 The LORD protects them and keeps them alive; they are called happy in the land. You do not give them up to the will of their enemies.
3 The LORD sustains them on their sickbed; in their illness you heal all their infirmities.
4 As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
5 My enemies wonder in malice when I will die, and my name perish.
6 And when they come to see me, they utter empty words, while their hearts gather mischief; when they go out, they tell it abroad.
7 All who hate me whisper together about me; they imagine the worst for me.
8 They think that a deadly thing has fastened on me, that I will not rise again from where I lie.
9 Even my bosom friend in whom I trusted, who ate of my bread, has lifted the heel against me.
10 But you, O LORD, be gracious to me, and raise me up, that I may repay them.
11 By this I know that you are pleased with me; because my enemy has not triumphed over me.
12 But you have upheld me because of my integrity, and set me in your presence forever.
13 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen and Amen.
(NRSV)
Most of us don’t know what it is to be poor so we have no sympathy for those who live in poverty. Popular wisdom is that those who are poor must have done something to bring this on themselves. Because of that the best course of action is to stand at a safe distance and counsel them to get jobs and education so that they can be just like us. In most cases, though, folks who are poor are caught in a systemic web of blocks and obstacles that keep them in the poverty to which they have been consigned. The psalmist tells us that this is not the way of God.
God calls us to consider the poor. To consider the plight of those relegated to a status of ‘other,’ people who are shuffled off and ignored. God asks us to work with individuals at the same time we are working to change the systems that keep segments of the population in poverty and on the brink of despair. As we consider those whose place is on the fringes of society and culture we become aware of the variety of ways people are helped and hurt by the current order of things.
The psalmist may have become ill due, in part, to ignoring the plight of the poor in general or a particular victim of poverty. Either way, we have the assurance that God is with us when we pay attention to those in poverty and will attend to us when we confess our sin in hopes of turning toward God and the people of God’s favor.
December 12, 2016
LCM
Fourth Sunday of Advent
December 18, 2016
Psalm 41
1 Happy are those who consider the poor; the LORD delivers them in the day of trouble.
2 The LORD protects them and keeps them alive; they are called happy in the land. You do not give them up to the will of their enemies.
3 The LORD sustains them on their sickbed; in their illness you heal all their infirmities.
4 As for me, I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
5 My enemies wonder in malice when I will die, and my name perish.
6 And when they come to see me, they utter empty words, while their hearts gather mischief; when they go out, they tell it abroad.
7 All who hate me whisper together about me; they imagine the worst for me.
8 They think that a deadly thing has fastened on me, that I will not rise again from where I lie.
9 Even my bosom friend in whom I trusted, who ate of my bread, has lifted the heel against me.
10 But you, O LORD, be gracious to me, and raise me up, that I may repay them.
11 By this I know that you are pleased with me; because my enemy has not triumphed over me.
12 But you have upheld me because of my integrity, and set me in your presence forever.
13 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen and Amen.
(NRSV)
Most of us don’t know what it is to be poor so we have no sympathy for those who live in poverty. Popular wisdom is that those who are poor must have done something to bring this on themselves. Because of that the best course of action is to stand at a safe distance and counsel them to get jobs and education so that they can be just like us. In most cases, though, folks who are poor are caught in a systemic web of blocks and obstacles that keep them in the poverty to which they have been consigned. The psalmist tells us that this is not the way of God.
God calls us to consider the poor. To consider the plight of those relegated to a status of ‘other,’ people who are shuffled off and ignored. God asks us to work with individuals at the same time we are working to change the systems that keep segments of the population in poverty and on the brink of despair. As we consider those whose place is on the fringes of society and culture we become aware of the variety of ways people are helped and hurt by the current order of things.
The psalmist may have become ill due, in part, to ignoring the plight of the poor in general or a particular victim of poverty. Either way, we have the assurance that God is with us when we pay attention to those in poverty and will attend to us when we confess our sin in hopes of turning toward God and the people of God’s favor.
December 12, 2016
LCM
Monday, December 5, 2016
Psalm Meditation 860
Third Sunday of Advent
December 11, 2016
Psalm 110
1 The LORD says to my lord, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”
2 The LORD sends out from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your foes.
3 Your people will offer themselves willingly on the day you lead your forces on the holy mountains. From the womb of the morning, like dew, your youth will come to you.
4 The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6 He will execute judgment among the nations, filling them with corpses;
he will shatter heads over the wide earth.
7 He will drink from the stream by the path; therefore he will lift up his head.
(NRSV)
As with many peoples of the biblical time and place God and king were so intimately tied together as to be one. If the king goes out at God’s direction he will be victorious beyond the skill and numbers of the army itself. In fact, if the king goes out as the agent of God the people of the army will go to battle willing to sacrifice their lives for God and king. God directs the battle and fights in it to assure that our side wins so decisively that there will be no question as to who is the winner and who is the loser.
These days the commanders of armies no longer go out into the battle, and rulers of nations do not go out onto the battlefield. Skilled strategists direct the action from a distance and rulers make decisions from places other than the heat of battle. Going to battle led by a king or other ruler is a foreign concept to us, making this psalm a difficult one to connect with. It is easy to believe that God is as distant from our day to day battles as commanders and rulers are from war zones and battlegrounds.
However, God is with us. In the heat of our daily battles, in the joy of our daily victories, and in the give and take of a normal day. No matter what we face in a given moment of a day we have the psalmist’s assurance that God is present with us. When things are going well, God is there. When things are going badly, God is there. When things are going as we expect a normal day to progress, God is there. God may or may not be the direct cause of the events of the day, however God is with us.
December 5, 2016
LCM
Third Sunday of Advent
December 11, 2016
Psalm 110
1 The LORD says to my lord, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”
2 The LORD sends out from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your foes.
3 Your people will offer themselves willingly on the day you lead your forces on the holy mountains. From the womb of the morning, like dew, your youth will come to you.
4 The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at your right hand; he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6 He will execute judgment among the nations, filling them with corpses;
he will shatter heads over the wide earth.
7 He will drink from the stream by the path; therefore he will lift up his head.
(NRSV)
As with many peoples of the biblical time and place God and king were so intimately tied together as to be one. If the king goes out at God’s direction he will be victorious beyond the skill and numbers of the army itself. In fact, if the king goes out as the agent of God the people of the army will go to battle willing to sacrifice their lives for God and king. God directs the battle and fights in it to assure that our side wins so decisively that there will be no question as to who is the winner and who is the loser.
These days the commanders of armies no longer go out into the battle, and rulers of nations do not go out onto the battlefield. Skilled strategists direct the action from a distance and rulers make decisions from places other than the heat of battle. Going to battle led by a king or other ruler is a foreign concept to us, making this psalm a difficult one to connect with. It is easy to believe that God is as distant from our day to day battles as commanders and rulers are from war zones and battlegrounds.
However, God is with us. In the heat of our daily battles, in the joy of our daily victories, and in the give and take of a normal day. No matter what we face in a given moment of a day we have the psalmist’s assurance that God is present with us. When things are going well, God is there. When things are going badly, God is there. When things are going as we expect a normal day to progress, God is there. God may or may not be the direct cause of the events of the day, however God is with us.
December 5, 2016
LCM
Monday, November 28, 2016
Psalm Meditation 859
Second Sunday of Advent
December 4, 2016
Psalm 91
1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
2 will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.”
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence;
4 he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day,
6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the LORD your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place,
10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.
15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them.
16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.
(NRSV)
Being in a dangerous situation and being afraid are two different things. In some situations, we have no idea how dangerous it is so we rush in as if no danger exists and realize later how foolish we have been. Sometimes we are aware of the danger and go in because of some greater need. Sometimes we are afraid because the danger is remembered or anticipated rather than present in the current situation. And there are folks who claim not to be afraid of anything. In some situations we are less afraid because we are with one who allays our fear.
The psalmist reminds people that in whatever situation they may find themselves God is with them. While there are certainly reasons to be afraid, knowing that God is with them they can be a less so. God is present to shield them, protect them and deliver them from any and all situations in which they find themselves. God will be with them and rescue them in every trouble in which they call out for God.
I believe that God is with each person in every time and place. I also believe that God rescues more folks than we know about. People of faith are aware of God’s presence and cry out for help. When it comes they give God credit for the help they have received. God may help others as well even though they do not recognize the hand of God at work in the particular situation or in their lives. Just because we don’t recognize or acknowledge the source of our help does not mean we have not been helped.
November 28, 2016
LCM
Second Sunday of Advent
December 4, 2016
Psalm 91
1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
2 will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.”
3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence;
4 he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.
5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day,
6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.
8 You will only look with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.
9 Because you have made the LORD your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place,
10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent.
11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
12 On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.
14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.
15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them.
16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.
(NRSV)
Being in a dangerous situation and being afraid are two different things. In some situations, we have no idea how dangerous it is so we rush in as if no danger exists and realize later how foolish we have been. Sometimes we are aware of the danger and go in because of some greater need. Sometimes we are afraid because the danger is remembered or anticipated rather than present in the current situation. And there are folks who claim not to be afraid of anything. In some situations we are less afraid because we are with one who allays our fear.
The psalmist reminds people that in whatever situation they may find themselves God is with them. While there are certainly reasons to be afraid, knowing that God is with them they can be a less so. God is present to shield them, protect them and deliver them from any and all situations in which they find themselves. God will be with them and rescue them in every trouble in which they call out for God.
I believe that God is with each person in every time and place. I also believe that God rescues more folks than we know about. People of faith are aware of God’s presence and cry out for help. When it comes they give God credit for the help they have received. God may help others as well even though they do not recognize the hand of God at work in the particular situation or in their lives. Just because we don’t recognize or acknowledge the source of our help does not mean we have not been helped.
November 28, 2016
LCM
Monday, November 21, 2016
Psalm Meditation 858
First Sunday of Advent
November 27, 2016
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)
At a time in which all divine beings are considered local, this psalm makes sense. The psalmist asks ‘our’ divinity to go to war against ‘their’ divinity so that we can be victorious against ‘those people.’ In addition, the earth itself is out to get us as it quakes and splits open underneath us. It is a scary time and what seems to make the most sense is that God has abandoned us to our enemies because of something we did to put us on the naughty list.
We have expanded our view of God to be the one who created all that is and who rules over the whole of creation. In this world view asking God to beat up our enemies for us becomes problematic. When we are all children of the same God, even when we have different opinions and varied allegiances, it is silly to ask God to intervene on our behalf against a disagreeable sibling. I know there are parents who have an obvious favorite child, however that is not parenting at its best. If a good parent doesn’t play favorites, it is hard to ask that God always be on my side or our side in every disagreement.
Tempting as it is to believe that I am so attuned to God as to be on the nice list in every disagreement, it isn’t realistic. Before we call on God to beat up the ‘bad guys’ we do well to check in to make sure that we are aligned with God in a big picture way. If I am right in a particular and miss the broad overarching view, I may be the one God would beat up, if it were God’s way to beat up on the ‘bad guys’ to protect the ‘good guys.’
November 21, 2016
LCM
First Sunday of Advent
November 27, 2016
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)
At a time in which all divine beings are considered local, this psalm makes sense. The psalmist asks ‘our’ divinity to go to war against ‘their’ divinity so that we can be victorious against ‘those people.’ In addition, the earth itself is out to get us as it quakes and splits open underneath us. It is a scary time and what seems to make the most sense is that God has abandoned us to our enemies because of something we did to put us on the naughty list.
We have expanded our view of God to be the one who created all that is and who rules over the whole of creation. In this world view asking God to beat up our enemies for us becomes problematic. When we are all children of the same God, even when we have different opinions and varied allegiances, it is silly to ask God to intervene on our behalf against a disagreeable sibling. I know there are parents who have an obvious favorite child, however that is not parenting at its best. If a good parent doesn’t play favorites, it is hard to ask that God always be on my side or our side in every disagreement.
Tempting as it is to believe that I am so attuned to God as to be on the nice list in every disagreement, it isn’t realistic. Before we call on God to beat up the ‘bad guys’ we do well to check in to make sure that we are aligned with God in a big picture way. If I am right in a particular and miss the broad overarching view, I may be the one God would beat up, if it were God’s way to beat up on the ‘bad guys’ to protect the ‘good guys.’
November 21, 2016
LCM
Monday, November 14, 2016
Psalm Meditation 857
Reign of Christ Sunday
November 20, 2016
Psalm 141
I call upon you, O LORD; come quickly to me; give ear to my voice when I call to you.
2 Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not turn my heart to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds in company with those who work iniquity; do not let me eat of their delicacies.
5 Let the righteous strike me; let the faithful correct me. Never let the oil of the wicked anoint my head, for my prayer is continually against their wicked deeds.
6 When they are given over to those who shall condemn them, then they shall learn that my words were pleasant.
7 Like a rock that one breaks apart and shatters on the land, so shall their bones be strewn at the mouth of Sheol.
8 But my eyes are turned toward you, O GOD, my Lord; in you I seek refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
9 Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me, and from the snares of evildoers.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I alone escape.
(NRSV)
There are times in which it is easy to say things that are hurtful to others. Sometimes those words are true, yet spoken in a way or at a time that is not helpful. When my team beats your team in sports, politics or religion and I let you know that I won and you lost, it is not helpful. When I do all that with the aim of belittling you, that is hurtful. When you are already down and hurting and I jump in your face to remind you that you are ‘a loser’ that is probably evil.
There are times in which it is best to set a guard over my mouth and say nothing rather than make it a point to say that hurtful thing to someone who is already suffering. Perhaps when the roles were reversed I heard those hurtful things and now I am getting back at all those who hurt me before. I do well to join the psalmist in praying, “Do not turn my heart to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds in company with those who work iniquity.”
Tables do have a way of turning. If I can keep myself from saying anything that sounds like bragging or insulting on the winning side, it is possible that I won’t hear it when I am next on the losing side. And if I do hear it, I can join the psalmist in turning toward God for a moment of refuge and respite.
November 14, 2016
LCM
Reign of Christ Sunday
November 20, 2016
Psalm 141
I call upon you, O LORD; come quickly to me; give ear to my voice when I call to you.
2 Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice.
3 Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips.
4 Do not turn my heart to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds in company with those who work iniquity; do not let me eat of their delicacies.
5 Let the righteous strike me; let the faithful correct me. Never let the oil of the wicked anoint my head, for my prayer is continually against their wicked deeds.
6 When they are given over to those who shall condemn them, then they shall learn that my words were pleasant.
7 Like a rock that one breaks apart and shatters on the land, so shall their bones be strewn at the mouth of Sheol.
8 But my eyes are turned toward you, O GOD, my Lord; in you I seek refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
9 Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me, and from the snares of evildoers.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I alone escape.
(NRSV)
There are times in which it is easy to say things that are hurtful to others. Sometimes those words are true, yet spoken in a way or at a time that is not helpful. When my team beats your team in sports, politics or religion and I let you know that I won and you lost, it is not helpful. When I do all that with the aim of belittling you, that is hurtful. When you are already down and hurting and I jump in your face to remind you that you are ‘a loser’ that is probably evil.
There are times in which it is best to set a guard over my mouth and say nothing rather than make it a point to say that hurtful thing to someone who is already suffering. Perhaps when the roles were reversed I heard those hurtful things and now I am getting back at all those who hurt me before. I do well to join the psalmist in praying, “Do not turn my heart to any evil, to busy myself with wicked deeds in company with those who work iniquity.”
Tables do have a way of turning. If I can keep myself from saying anything that sounds like bragging or insulting on the winning side, it is possible that I won’t hear it when I am next on the losing side. And if I do hear it, I can join the psalmist in turning toward God for a moment of refuge and respite.
November 14, 2016
LCM
Monday, November 7, 2016
Psalm Meditation 856
Proper 28
November 13, 2016
Psalm 10
1 Why, O LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.
3 For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart, those greedy for gain curse and renounce the LORD.
4 In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, “God will not seek it out”; all their thoughts are, “There is no God.”
5 Their ways prosper at all times; your judgments are on high, out of their sight; as for their foes, they scoff at them.
6 They think in their heart, “We shall not be moved; throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.”
7 Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression; under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.
8 They sit in ambush in the villages; in hiding places they murder the innocent. Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
9 they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert; they lurk that they may seize the poor; they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.
10 They stoop, they crouch, and the helpless fall by their might.
11 They think in their heart, “God has forgotten, he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”
12 Rise up, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand; do not forget the oppressed.
13 Why do the wicked renounce God, and say in their hearts, “You will not call us to account”?
14 But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief, that you may take it into your hands; the helpless commit themselves to you; you have been the helper of the orphan.
15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers; seek out their wickedness until you find none.
16 The LORD is king forever and ever; the nations shall perish from his land.
17 O LORD, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear
18 to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more.
(NRSV)
It is tempting to say that rich people have no need of God, however I know some wealthy people who are faithful in a number of ways. There must be a more subtle distinction than rich and poor in the matter of who needs God. Those who depend on their wealth and resources to keep them away from trouble, whose purpose is to protect their riches from any claim other than their own are the ones the psalmist is addressing here. Those who have no other rule in their lives than to get more of what is out there with as little cost as possible to themselves are the evil ones.
The psalmist is not so concerned about the money as the way the wicked treat the people of God’s particular concern, those who have little to nothing. Those who prey on the poor in order to fill their own coffers are wicked and evil as far as the psalmist is concerned. These folks have no thought of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Sarah. The god of these wicked folks is the very riches they seek. Their lives are given over to the pursuit of riches at the expense of all else. They do not care for the poor, they do not even see them except as sources for more and more.
The important part of the psalm is that God sees what we do; God pays attention to how we behave and how we treat each other. It isn’t about the money, it is about our attitude toward money and the people with whom we share our lives. When we treat people as brothers and sisters, God notices. When we treat people as objects, especially objects to help us achieve our selfish ends, God notices. In God’s good time we are rewarded for the ways we treat each other. “O LORD, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more.”
November 7, 2016
LCM
Proper 28
November 13, 2016
Psalm 10
1 Why, O LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.
3 For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart, those greedy for gain curse and renounce the LORD.
4 In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, “God will not seek it out”; all their thoughts are, “There is no God.”
5 Their ways prosper at all times; your judgments are on high, out of their sight; as for their foes, they scoff at them.
6 They think in their heart, “We shall not be moved; throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.”
7 Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression; under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.
8 They sit in ambush in the villages; in hiding places they murder the innocent. Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
9 they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert; they lurk that they may seize the poor; they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.
10 They stoop, they crouch, and the helpless fall by their might.
11 They think in their heart, “God has forgotten, he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”
12 Rise up, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand; do not forget the oppressed.
13 Why do the wicked renounce God, and say in their hearts, “You will not call us to account”?
14 But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief, that you may take it into your hands; the helpless commit themselves to you; you have been the helper of the orphan.
15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers; seek out their wickedness until you find none.
16 The LORD is king forever and ever; the nations shall perish from his land.
17 O LORD, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear
18 to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more.
(NRSV)
It is tempting to say that rich people have no need of God, however I know some wealthy people who are faithful in a number of ways. There must be a more subtle distinction than rich and poor in the matter of who needs God. Those who depend on their wealth and resources to keep them away from trouble, whose purpose is to protect their riches from any claim other than their own are the ones the psalmist is addressing here. Those who have no other rule in their lives than to get more of what is out there with as little cost as possible to themselves are the evil ones.
The psalmist is not so concerned about the money as the way the wicked treat the people of God’s particular concern, those who have little to nothing. Those who prey on the poor in order to fill their own coffers are wicked and evil as far as the psalmist is concerned. These folks have no thought of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Sarah. The god of these wicked folks is the very riches they seek. Their lives are given over to the pursuit of riches at the expense of all else. They do not care for the poor, they do not even see them except as sources for more and more.
The important part of the psalm is that God sees what we do; God pays attention to how we behave and how we treat each other. It isn’t about the money, it is about our attitude toward money and the people with whom we share our lives. When we treat people as brothers and sisters, God notices. When we treat people as objects, especially objects to help us achieve our selfish ends, God notices. In God’s good time we are rewarded for the ways we treat each other. “O LORD, you will hear the desire of the meek; you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed, so that those from earth may strike terror no more.”
November 7, 2016
LCM
Monday, October 31, 2016
Psalm Meditation 855
Proper 27 or All Saint’s Sunday
November 6, 2016
Psalm 43
1 Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people;
from those who are deceitful and unjust deliver me!
2 For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you cast me off?
Why must I walk about mournfully because of the oppression of the enemy?
3 O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling.
4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.
(NRSV)
In the midst of the darkest dark there comes a glimmer of hope, an inkling that this particular darkness will not last forever. It starts as a hint of light in the corner of the eye. It may disappear for a moment, to return later, a little brighter and easier to pick out of the darkness. It may fade and return multiple times, staying longer and glowing more consistently as time goes by. At some point the glimmer becomes a glow and the glow becomes a light. The light carries hope and warmth in its beams.
Around the time the faintest glimmer appears there is a sense that I am not alone, there are others and there is another. The others are those who suffer with me and those who would trade places and suffer for me if they possibly could. The singular other is the presence of God. God is the one who can withstand my anger and blaming, the intensity of my sadness and the despair that threatens to undo me completely. God is the one who stands above the fray and in the midst of it, all at the same time. The immensity of the presence of God is a reminder that I am in the presence of one who help me up each time I fall.
And then one day, almost unbidden, music returns. A song rises from my heart and lifts my voice with it. It is tentative at first. It is never insistent, it sits on the edge of my life until I am ready to let it rise out of me. A joy returns tinged in sadness, it is joy nonetheless.
October 31, 2016
LCM
Proper 27 or All Saint’s Sunday
November 6, 2016
Psalm 43
1 Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people;
from those who are deceitful and unjust deliver me!
2 For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you cast me off?
Why must I walk about mournfully because of the oppression of the enemy?
3 O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling.
4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.
(NRSV)
In the midst of the darkest dark there comes a glimmer of hope, an inkling that this particular darkness will not last forever. It starts as a hint of light in the corner of the eye. It may disappear for a moment, to return later, a little brighter and easier to pick out of the darkness. It may fade and return multiple times, staying longer and glowing more consistently as time goes by. At some point the glimmer becomes a glow and the glow becomes a light. The light carries hope and warmth in its beams.
Around the time the faintest glimmer appears there is a sense that I am not alone, there are others and there is another. The others are those who suffer with me and those who would trade places and suffer for me if they possibly could. The singular other is the presence of God. God is the one who can withstand my anger and blaming, the intensity of my sadness and the despair that threatens to undo me completely. God is the one who stands above the fray and in the midst of it, all at the same time. The immensity of the presence of God is a reminder that I am in the presence of one who help me up each time I fall.
And then one day, almost unbidden, music returns. A song rises from my heart and lifts my voice with it. It is tentative at first. It is never insistent, it sits on the edge of my life until I am ready to let it rise out of me. A joy returns tinged in sadness, it is joy nonetheless.
October 31, 2016
LCM
Monday, October 24, 2016
Psalm Meditation 854
Proper 26
October 30, 2016
Psalm 108
1 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make melody. Awake, my soul!
2 Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn.
3 I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples, and I will sing praises to you among the nations.
4 For your steadfast love is higher than the heavens, and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over all the earth.
6 Give victory with your right hand, and answer me, so that those whom you love may be rescued.
7 God has promised in his sanctuary: “With exultation I will divide up Shechem, and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
8 Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet; Judah is my scepter.
9 Moab is my washbasin; on Edom I hurl my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
10 Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?
11 Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
12 O grant us help against the foe, for human help is worthless.
13 With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.
(NRSV)
When things are going well, God is with us. When things are going badly, God has abandoned us. It is a pretty simple formula of who God is and what we can expect. And it worked for the psalmist and the people of that time. Their experience was based on the rule of kings who held absolute sway over every aspect of life, and death, in the kingdom. Since kings hold that kind of power over people, God must hold that kind of power too.
God can decide without warning to change the course of peoples’ lives. On a bad day, life can be made miserable out of nowhere. People were willing to believe that something must have happened, they must have done something, to push God’s buttons whether it could be readily identified or not. On a good day, God had smiled on us for some unknown action on our part. While God has the power to change lives, it is in response to what we have done or left undone in our relationship with God.
At some point we realized that this means that God is reacting to us, and that robs God of the power to act in our lives. What if God loves us and chooses to be present among us no matter what? When things are going well, God is present among us. When things are going poorly, God is present among us. In our celebrations the presence of God reminds us that we are not the sole architects of our lives so that we celebrate with a touch of humility. In our trials the presence of God reminds us that we are not alone, no matter what.
October 24, 2016
LCM
Proper 26
October 30, 2016
Psalm 108
1 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make melody. Awake, my soul!
2 Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn.
3 I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples, and I will sing praises to you among the nations.
4 For your steadfast love is higher than the heavens, and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over all the earth.
6 Give victory with your right hand, and answer me, so that those whom you love may be rescued.
7 God has promised in his sanctuary: “With exultation I will divide up Shechem, and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
8 Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet; Judah is my scepter.
9 Moab is my washbasin; on Edom I hurl my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
10 Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?
11 Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
12 O grant us help against the foe, for human help is worthless.
13 With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes.
(NRSV)
When things are going well, God is with us. When things are going badly, God has abandoned us. It is a pretty simple formula of who God is and what we can expect. And it worked for the psalmist and the people of that time. Their experience was based on the rule of kings who held absolute sway over every aspect of life, and death, in the kingdom. Since kings hold that kind of power over people, God must hold that kind of power too.
God can decide without warning to change the course of peoples’ lives. On a bad day, life can be made miserable out of nowhere. People were willing to believe that something must have happened, they must have done something, to push God’s buttons whether it could be readily identified or not. On a good day, God had smiled on us for some unknown action on our part. While God has the power to change lives, it is in response to what we have done or left undone in our relationship with God.
At some point we realized that this means that God is reacting to us, and that robs God of the power to act in our lives. What if God loves us and chooses to be present among us no matter what? When things are going well, God is present among us. When things are going poorly, God is present among us. In our celebrations the presence of God reminds us that we are not the sole architects of our lives so that we celebrate with a touch of humility. In our trials the presence of God reminds us that we are not alone, no matter what.
October 24, 2016
LCM
Monday, October 17, 2016
Psalm Meditation 853
Proper 25
October 23, 2016
Psalm 93
1 The LORD is king, he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed, he is girded with strength. He has established the world; it shall never be moved;
2 your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting.
3 The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring.
4 More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters, more majestic than the waves of the sea, majestic on high is the LORD!
5 Your decrees are very sure; holiness befits your house, O LORD, forevermore.
(NRSV)
It is in our nature to be frightened by the events and occurrences around us. Sometimes we give in to our fears, sometimes we rationalize them away, sometimes we ignore them or push them to our subconscious, and other times we use them as reminders that we are people of God. We react differently depending on our circumstances at the time. Each of our reactions is an opportunity to turn to God.
We turn to God to have our needs met. When we give in to our fears we pray that they are unfounded, less fearsome than they could be and that God is with us no matter what. When we are rational in facing our fears we pray that our calculations are correct and that the abilities God has given us will be what we need to face this fear. When we ignore our fears our conscious or subconscious prayer is that we will get through this despite our fear. In each situation we trust that God is with us in the midst of our fearful situation.
The psalmist uses fear as a reminder that God is bigger than any fear we may face. The fearful situation may overwhelm and overcome us, however we will continue to be held in the presence of God. In the midst of a terrifying flood, the psalmist announces that God is bigger than the flood. We may be swept away in the rising water but God will stand firm against the flood and will be with us in life and in death.
October 17, 2016
LCM
Proper 25
October 23, 2016
Psalm 93
1 The LORD is king, he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed, he is girded with strength. He has established the world; it shall never be moved;
2 your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting.
3 The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring.
4 More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters, more majestic than the waves of the sea, majestic on high is the LORD!
5 Your decrees are very sure; holiness befits your house, O LORD, forevermore.
(NRSV)
It is in our nature to be frightened by the events and occurrences around us. Sometimes we give in to our fears, sometimes we rationalize them away, sometimes we ignore them or push them to our subconscious, and other times we use them as reminders that we are people of God. We react differently depending on our circumstances at the time. Each of our reactions is an opportunity to turn to God.
We turn to God to have our needs met. When we give in to our fears we pray that they are unfounded, less fearsome than they could be and that God is with us no matter what. When we are rational in facing our fears we pray that our calculations are correct and that the abilities God has given us will be what we need to face this fear. When we ignore our fears our conscious or subconscious prayer is that we will get through this despite our fear. In each situation we trust that God is with us in the midst of our fearful situation.
The psalmist uses fear as a reminder that God is bigger than any fear we may face. The fearful situation may overwhelm and overcome us, however we will continue to be held in the presence of God. In the midst of a terrifying flood, the psalmist announces that God is bigger than the flood. We may be swept away in the rising water but God will stand firm against the flood and will be with us in life and in death.
October 17, 2016
LCM
Monday, October 10, 2016
Psalm Meditation 852
Proper 24
October 16, 2016
Psalm 58
1 Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods? Do you judge people fairly?
2 No, in your hearts you devise wrongs; your hands deal out violence on earth.
3 The wicked go astray from the womb; they err from their birth, speaking lies.
4 They have venom like the venom of a serpent, like the deaf adder that stops its ear,
5 so that it does not hear the voice of charmers or of the cunning enchanter.
6 O God, break the teeth in their mouths; tear out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD!
7 Let them vanish like water that runs away; like grass let them be trodden down and wither.
8 Let them be like the snail that dissolves into slime; like the untimely birth that never sees the sun.
9 Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of thorns, whether green or ablaze, may he sweep them away!
10 The righteous will rejoice when they see vengeance done; they will bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 People will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.”
(NRSV)
Anyone who has been bullied or shamed in defeat is aware of what the psalmist is going through here. We rail against the unfairness of it all and call down the same abuse and insults we have suffered on those who caused our suffering. And since they are partly responsible for the behavior we rail against the gods of our tormentors, especially if they are not our own. We know that if God were to heap these abuses on our enemies we would rejoice, sing, and dance in the face of their suffering.
The reality is that suffering is ugly even if it is one of our enemies who suffers. There is something cathartic about asking God to step in and exact our revenge on those who have proved themselves willing to make us suffer. If they can do that to us, wouldn’t it be grand if God would punish them in our name. While we may have violent fantasies of revenge and bathing in the blood of those who torment us, fantasy is not as gory and gruesome as the real thing. On top of that vengeance is not really as satisfying as we imagine.
Wanting to experience the suffering of others at the hands of God may give us a momentary rush of fiendish pleasure, however it is finally more fiendish than pleasurable. God is not one to seek revenge on those who do evil to others. Disappointing as that may be we can also be grateful that God has not given us what we deserve for each of our actions. Fantasizing revenge gives a great adrenaline rush, it does not, however, bring us closer to God. Getting closer to God involves us behaving more like God rather than asking God to live out our fantasies of vengeance.
October 10, 2016
LCM
Proper 24
October 16, 2016
Psalm 58
1 Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods? Do you judge people fairly?
2 No, in your hearts you devise wrongs; your hands deal out violence on earth.
3 The wicked go astray from the womb; they err from their birth, speaking lies.
4 They have venom like the venom of a serpent, like the deaf adder that stops its ear,
5 so that it does not hear the voice of charmers or of the cunning enchanter.
6 O God, break the teeth in their mouths; tear out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD!
7 Let them vanish like water that runs away; like grass let them be trodden down and wither.
8 Let them be like the snail that dissolves into slime; like the untimely birth that never sees the sun.
9 Sooner than your pots can feel the heat of thorns, whether green or ablaze, may he sweep them away!
10 The righteous will rejoice when they see vengeance done; they will bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 People will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.”
(NRSV)
Anyone who has been bullied or shamed in defeat is aware of what the psalmist is going through here. We rail against the unfairness of it all and call down the same abuse and insults we have suffered on those who caused our suffering. And since they are partly responsible for the behavior we rail against the gods of our tormentors, especially if they are not our own. We know that if God were to heap these abuses on our enemies we would rejoice, sing, and dance in the face of their suffering.
The reality is that suffering is ugly even if it is one of our enemies who suffers. There is something cathartic about asking God to step in and exact our revenge on those who have proved themselves willing to make us suffer. If they can do that to us, wouldn’t it be grand if God would punish them in our name. While we may have violent fantasies of revenge and bathing in the blood of those who torment us, fantasy is not as gory and gruesome as the real thing. On top of that vengeance is not really as satisfying as we imagine.
Wanting to experience the suffering of others at the hands of God may give us a momentary rush of fiendish pleasure, however it is finally more fiendish than pleasurable. God is not one to seek revenge on those who do evil to others. Disappointing as that may be we can also be grateful that God has not given us what we deserve for each of our actions. Fantasizing revenge gives a great adrenaline rush, it does not, however, bring us closer to God. Getting closer to God involves us behaving more like God rather than asking God to live out our fantasies of vengeance.
October 10, 2016
LCM
Monday, October 3, 2016
Psalm Meditation 851
Proper 23
October 9, 2016
Psalm 143
1 Hear my prayer, O LORD; give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness; answer me in your righteousness.
2 Do not enter into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.
3 For the enemy has pursued me, crushing my life to the ground, making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4 Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled.
5 I remember the days of old, I think about all your deeds, I meditate on the works of your hands.
6 I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land .Selah
7 Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me, or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
8 Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning, for in you I put my trust.
Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
9 Save me, O LORD, from my enemies; I have fled to you for refuge.
10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.
11 For your name’s sake, O LORD, preserve my life. In your righteousness bring me out of trouble.
12 In your steadfast love cut off my enemies, and destroy all my adversaries, for I am your servant.
(NRSV)
When I first read this it seemed that the psalmist was bargaining with God for a favor, as if God could somehow owe us one. Most of us have attempted to strike a deal with God along the lines of, if you do this for me then I will do that for you. “If you get me out of this ditch, I will go to church every week for a year.” If we do get out of that ditch, and we do go to church every week for a year, we will feel as if we have somehow done our good deed and God is paid in full for getting us out of the mess in which we found ourselves. That was my thinking after the first reading.
After multiple readings I noticed that the psalmist is making these pleas in the name of God’s righteousness and faithfulness. There is full awareness on the psalmist’s part that “no one living is righteous before you.” We can’t do enough to qualify for any reciprocity on God’s part. There is not enough time, space or energy for any of us to be able to earn any favors from God. Like the psalmist, we are left to depend on the faithfulness and righteousness of God. The psalmist is not asking for deliverance from the crushing weight of an enemy or the judgment of God based on deserving it but on the basis of God’s promise and example of what is right and just.
Those who ask for God’s help and presence as a part of a reciprocal bargain, I do this, you do that, will get God’s help and presence. Those who ask for help and presence in dependence of God’s righteous and faithfulness will all receive help and presence. In both cases our help will come from the depths of God’s love for us. God does not and will not owe us any favors. No matter what deals we make, they will not be honored because we have fulfilled our side. God’s favor comes to us as an act of righteousness and faithfulness rising out of God’s steadfast love for us.
October 3, 2016
LCM
Proper 23
October 9, 2016
Psalm 143
1 Hear my prayer, O LORD; give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness; answer me in your righteousness.
2 Do not enter into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.
3 For the enemy has pursued me, crushing my life to the ground, making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4 Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled.
5 I remember the days of old, I think about all your deeds, I meditate on the works of your hands.
6 I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land .Selah
7 Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me, or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
8 Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning, for in you I put my trust.
Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
9 Save me, O LORD, from my enemies; I have fled to you for refuge.
10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.
11 For your name’s sake, O LORD, preserve my life. In your righteousness bring me out of trouble.
12 In your steadfast love cut off my enemies, and destroy all my adversaries, for I am your servant.
(NRSV)
When I first read this it seemed that the psalmist was bargaining with God for a favor, as if God could somehow owe us one. Most of us have attempted to strike a deal with God along the lines of, if you do this for me then I will do that for you. “If you get me out of this ditch, I will go to church every week for a year.” If we do get out of that ditch, and we do go to church every week for a year, we will feel as if we have somehow done our good deed and God is paid in full for getting us out of the mess in which we found ourselves. That was my thinking after the first reading.
After multiple readings I noticed that the psalmist is making these pleas in the name of God’s righteousness and faithfulness. There is full awareness on the psalmist’s part that “no one living is righteous before you.” We can’t do enough to qualify for any reciprocity on God’s part. There is not enough time, space or energy for any of us to be able to earn any favors from God. Like the psalmist, we are left to depend on the faithfulness and righteousness of God. The psalmist is not asking for deliverance from the crushing weight of an enemy or the judgment of God based on deserving it but on the basis of God’s promise and example of what is right and just.
Those who ask for God’s help and presence as a part of a reciprocal bargain, I do this, you do that, will get God’s help and presence. Those who ask for help and presence in dependence of God’s righteous and faithfulness will all receive help and presence. In both cases our help will come from the depths of God’s love for us. God does not and will not owe us any favors. No matter what deals we make, they will not be honored because we have fulfilled our side. God’s favor comes to us as an act of righteousness and faithfulness rising out of God’s steadfast love for us.
October 3, 2016
LCM
Monday, September 26, 2016
Psalm Meditation 850
World Communion Sunday
October 2, 2016
Psalm 8
1 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
2 Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger.
3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established;
4 what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?
5 Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.
6 You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet,
7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
9 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
(NRSV)
This is a celebration of the place of humanity in creation. With a much more narrow view of the scope of creation than we have today, the psalmist is aware that humans are a relatively small part of it in terms of size. Despite our seeming insignificance God has given us a glory and honor more grand than we seem to warrant. In addition, humans have the added responsibility of caring for parts of creation with whom we share time and place. Even as the psalmist celebrates the place of humans in creation there is an awareness that it is all under the auspices of God.
While we are quick to accept our place at the top of the ladder of evolution and the food chain, we are not always so quick to recognize our responsibility to those on the rest of the ladder. Some folks excuse a lack of concern for creation by allowing that God will bring an end to us before we get a chance to use up all the resources available. Our attitudes can be compared to the way we view any set of rules. As children and youth, as those under the rules, we see rules as attempts to squelch our fun and creativity. As adults, as the makers of the rules, we see rules as a way to keep everyone safe, to keep the playing field as level as possible and to give the greatest number the greatest chance to succeed and excel.
Celebrate the place of humans in creation. Celebrate the majesty of God and the blessings bestowed on us by God’s creative power. Recognize, too, that we are a part of creation and have some responsibility for it. We are not over and above the creative process, something other than creatures, free to use and abuse it as we see fit. We live under the majestic authority of God rather than in the place of God.
September 26, 2016
LCM
World Communion Sunday
October 2, 2016
Psalm 8
1 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
2 Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger.
3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established;
4 what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?
5 Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.
6 You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet,
7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
9 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
(NRSV)
This is a celebration of the place of humanity in creation. With a much more narrow view of the scope of creation than we have today, the psalmist is aware that humans are a relatively small part of it in terms of size. Despite our seeming insignificance God has given us a glory and honor more grand than we seem to warrant. In addition, humans have the added responsibility of caring for parts of creation with whom we share time and place. Even as the psalmist celebrates the place of humans in creation there is an awareness that it is all under the auspices of God.
While we are quick to accept our place at the top of the ladder of evolution and the food chain, we are not always so quick to recognize our responsibility to those on the rest of the ladder. Some folks excuse a lack of concern for creation by allowing that God will bring an end to us before we get a chance to use up all the resources available. Our attitudes can be compared to the way we view any set of rules. As children and youth, as those under the rules, we see rules as attempts to squelch our fun and creativity. As adults, as the makers of the rules, we see rules as a way to keep everyone safe, to keep the playing field as level as possible and to give the greatest number the greatest chance to succeed and excel.
Celebrate the place of humans in creation. Celebrate the majesty of God and the blessings bestowed on us by God’s creative power. Recognize, too, that we are a part of creation and have some responsibility for it. We are not over and above the creative process, something other than creatures, free to use and abuse it as we see fit. We live under the majestic authority of God rather than in the place of God.
September 26, 2016
LCM
Monday, September 19, 2016
Psalm Meditation 849
Proper 21
September 25, 2016
Psalm 45
1 My heart overflows with a goodly theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.
2 You are the most handsome of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.
3 Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one, in your glory and majesty.
4 In your majesty ride on victoriously for the cause of truth and to defend the right; let your right hand teach you dread deeds.
5 Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; the peoples fall under you.
6 Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever. Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity;
7 you love righteousness and hate wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;
8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia. From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;
9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor; at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
10 Hear, O daughter, consider and incline your ear; forget your people and your father’s house,
11 and the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your lord, bow to him;
12 the people of Tyre will seek your favor with gifts, the richest of the people 13 with all kinds of wealth. The princess is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes;
14 in many-colored robes she is led to the king; behind her the virgins, her companions, follow.
15 With joy and gladness they are led along as they enter the palace of the king.
16 In the place of ancestors you, O king, shall have sons; you will make them princes in all the earth.
17 I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations; therefore the peoples will praise you forever and ever.
(NRSV)
For those in the biblical age the king was the direct agent of God. In some cultures the king was considered divine during his reign and certainly after his death. For the people of YHWH, the king was God’s agent on earth and could be addressed as God due to the close association of the two. At the same time there was no illusion that the king was anything beyond a human being who served in the name of God. While this psalm is addressed to the king, at the time of a wedding, there are otherwise confusing references to God.
Historical records were not kind to some of the kings. There are stories of kings who were to act as agents of God who acted more as if they were gods, with no one to hold them accountable for their actions. They did what they wanted and felt no responsibility to act according to the rules and laws of YHWH. For some of those kings the biblical/historical record is only long enough to give his name, the number of years he reigned and that he did what was evil in the sight of God.
While most of us will not be named in history books that will be studied in schools across the world, we do well to choose whether we will follow the laws, rules, testimonies and examples of God and those who have gone before us in service to God or not. We may do well to follow the advice given to the bride in this psalm, “Hear, O daughter, consider and incline your ear; forget your people and your father’s house,” By forgetting our people and houses we give ourselves over to God as those who serve God with a wholeness and holiness of heart.
September 19, 2016
LCM
Proper 21
September 25, 2016
Psalm 45
1 My heart overflows with a goodly theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.
2 You are the most handsome of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.
3 Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one, in your glory and majesty.
4 In your majesty ride on victoriously for the cause of truth and to defend the right; let your right hand teach you dread deeds.
5 Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; the peoples fall under you.
6 Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever. Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity;
7 you love righteousness and hate wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;
8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia. From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;
9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor; at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.
10 Hear, O daughter, consider and incline your ear; forget your people and your father’s house,
11 and the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your lord, bow to him;
12 the people of Tyre will seek your favor with gifts, the richest of the people 13 with all kinds of wealth. The princess is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes;
14 in many-colored robes she is led to the king; behind her the virgins, her companions, follow.
15 With joy and gladness they are led along as they enter the palace of the king.
16 In the place of ancestors you, O king, shall have sons; you will make them princes in all the earth.
17 I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations; therefore the peoples will praise you forever and ever.
(NRSV)
For those in the biblical age the king was the direct agent of God. In some cultures the king was considered divine during his reign and certainly after his death. For the people of YHWH, the king was God’s agent on earth and could be addressed as God due to the close association of the two. At the same time there was no illusion that the king was anything beyond a human being who served in the name of God. While this psalm is addressed to the king, at the time of a wedding, there are otherwise confusing references to God.
Historical records were not kind to some of the kings. There are stories of kings who were to act as agents of God who acted more as if they were gods, with no one to hold them accountable for their actions. They did what they wanted and felt no responsibility to act according to the rules and laws of YHWH. For some of those kings the biblical/historical record is only long enough to give his name, the number of years he reigned and that he did what was evil in the sight of God.
While most of us will not be named in history books that will be studied in schools across the world, we do well to choose whether we will follow the laws, rules, testimonies and examples of God and those who have gone before us in service to God or not. We may do well to follow the advice given to the bride in this psalm, “Hear, O daughter, consider and incline your ear; forget your people and your father’s house,” By forgetting our people and houses we give ourselves over to God as those who serve God with a wholeness and holiness of heart.
September 19, 2016
LCM
Monday, September 12, 2016
Psalm Meditation 848
Proper 20
September 18, 2016
Psalm 106:1-16,40-48
1 Praise the LORD! O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever.
2 Who can utter the mighty doings of the LORD, or declare all his praise?
3 Happy are those who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times.
4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people; help me when you deliver them;
5 that I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation, that I may glory in your heritage.
6 Both we and our ancestors have sinned; we have committed iniquity, have done wickedly.
7 Our ancestors, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wonderful works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled against the Most High at the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, so that he might make known his mighty power.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry; he led them through the deep as through a desert.
10 So he saved them from the hand of the foe, and delivered them from the hand of the enemy.
11 The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them was left.
12 Then they believed his words; they sang his praise.
13 But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel.
14 But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness, and put God to the test in the desert;
15 he gave them what they asked, but sent a wasting disease among them.
16 They were jealous of Moses in the camp, and of Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.
40 Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people, and he abhorred his heritage;
41 he gave them into the hand of the nations, so that those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43 Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes, and were brought low through their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless he regarded their distress when he heard their cry.
45 For their sake he remembered his covenant, and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
46 He caused them to be pitied by all who held them captive.
47 Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise.
48 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.” Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
There are those who believe that God acts in response to our behavior, either with blessing or punishment. As if we have the power to sway God from an intended course of action through our action or lack thereof. Much like children who blame themselves for the divorce of their parents, our actions are not the cause of the behavior of those around us whose power is far beyond our own. The same goes for victims of abuse; it is not the actions of the abused that have caused abuse to be rained down on them. We do not have the power to change the minds, hearts and actions of those around us.
This does not mean that we are totally innocent in our actions. We have the power to withdraw, and to engage. Even if we push the buttons that bring on familiar actions, we are not the final cause of the actions and reactions of others. When we withdraw from the source of pain and of blessing, we do not alter the action of the other so much as we have distanced ourselves from the source. These children of God had gotten used to the blessings of God’s presence and believed they would receive them no matter how far afield they might wander. The psalmist reminds them that this is not the case.
God loves us and offers blessings to us. While we can’t remove ourselves from God’s love we can refuse to receive that love by a variety of blocks and barriers placed by actions and attitudes. As those before us, we place ever greater demands on God, expecting, not love but servitude. In this case God ceases to be one who loves us and becomes instead a vending machine of our needs and wants. The love of God continues even though our attitude has gone from love and appreciation to one of demand and expectation. It is not God who has changed. “43 Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes, and were brought low through their iniquity. 44 Nevertheless he regarded their distress when he heard their cry. 45 For their sake he remembered his covenant, and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love.” When we return to God we discover one who stands ready to love us in a variety of ways.
September 12, 2016
LCM
Proper 20
September 18, 2016
Psalm 106:1-16,40-48
1 Praise the LORD! O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever.
2 Who can utter the mighty doings of the LORD, or declare all his praise?
3 Happy are those who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times.
4 Remember me, O LORD, when you show favor to your people; help me when you deliver them;
5 that I may see the prosperity of your chosen ones, that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation, that I may glory in your heritage.
6 Both we and our ancestors have sinned; we have committed iniquity, have done wickedly.
7 Our ancestors, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wonderful works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled against the Most High at the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, so that he might make known his mighty power.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry; he led them through the deep as through a desert.
10 So he saved them from the hand of the foe, and delivered them from the hand of the enemy.
11 The waters covered their adversaries; not one of them was left.
12 Then they believed his words; they sang his praise.
13 But they soon forgot his works; they did not wait for his counsel.
14 But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness, and put God to the test in the desert;
15 he gave them what they asked, but sent a wasting disease among them.
16 They were jealous of Moses in the camp, and of Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.
40 Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people, and he abhorred his heritage;
41 he gave them into the hand of the nations, so that those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43 Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes, and were brought low through their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless he regarded their distress when he heard their cry.
45 For their sake he remembered his covenant, and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
46 He caused them to be pitied by all who held them captive.
47 Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise.
48 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
And let all the people say, “Amen.” Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
There are those who believe that God acts in response to our behavior, either with blessing or punishment. As if we have the power to sway God from an intended course of action through our action or lack thereof. Much like children who blame themselves for the divorce of their parents, our actions are not the cause of the behavior of those around us whose power is far beyond our own. The same goes for victims of abuse; it is not the actions of the abused that have caused abuse to be rained down on them. We do not have the power to change the minds, hearts and actions of those around us.
This does not mean that we are totally innocent in our actions. We have the power to withdraw, and to engage. Even if we push the buttons that bring on familiar actions, we are not the final cause of the actions and reactions of others. When we withdraw from the source of pain and of blessing, we do not alter the action of the other so much as we have distanced ourselves from the source. These children of God had gotten used to the blessings of God’s presence and believed they would receive them no matter how far afield they might wander. The psalmist reminds them that this is not the case.
God loves us and offers blessings to us. While we can’t remove ourselves from God’s love we can refuse to receive that love by a variety of blocks and barriers placed by actions and attitudes. As those before us, we place ever greater demands on God, expecting, not love but servitude. In this case God ceases to be one who loves us and becomes instead a vending machine of our needs and wants. The love of God continues even though our attitude has gone from love and appreciation to one of demand and expectation. It is not God who has changed. “43 Many times he delivered them, but they were rebellious in their purposes, and were brought low through their iniquity. 44 Nevertheless he regarded their distress when he heard their cry. 45 For their sake he remembered his covenant, and showed compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love.” When we return to God we discover one who stands ready to love us in a variety of ways.
September 12, 2016
LCM
Monday, September 5, 2016
Psalm Meditation 847
Proper 19
September 11, 2016
Psalm 95
1 O come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed.
6 O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!
7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice!
8 Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
9 when your ancestors tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.
10 For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they do not regard my ways.”
11 Therefore in my anger I swore, “They shall not enter my rest.”
(NRSV)
The psalmist can be seen drawing a distinction between our God and the gods of others. Those people have a god of the depths, a god of the mountains, a god of the sea, and of the earth. Our people have one God who created all of those things and rules over them. In part it is cultural competitiveness, as one group makes light of another in order to win some contest in which our side makes the rules and decides the outcome. We rig the contest so that we win. The question continues to this day; are there multiple deities from which to choose or is there one?
We make the statement of faith that there is only one God. Then it gets interesting. Some people go on to say that this group or that group couldn’t possibly worship our God because they have other demands placed on them by their faith. In other cases, there are multiple deities with separate names and attributes, with different realms of power and influence. Some of us are quick to dismiss these folks as not worshipping the God we worship. If there is only one God, and I believe that, each religion touches a differing interpretation of who God is and the demands placed on us because of that.
I tend to see friends and family in a positive light. I know people who do not hold the same opinion of these people. Is one of us right and one of us wrong? Perhaps. It is just as likely that we have had different sets of experiences with this person. Does it seem as if we are talking about two different people when we apply our various filters to our opinions on someone? Definitely. Despite our different experiences and opinions we have the same person in mind. If we can do that with each other, we can certainly do that with God, who is beyond our ability to know and comprehend fully.
September 5, 2016
LCM
Proper 19
September 11, 2016
Psalm 95
1 O come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed.
6 O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!
7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice!
8 Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
9 when your ancestors tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.
10 For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they do not regard my ways.”
11 Therefore in my anger I swore, “They shall not enter my rest.”
(NRSV)
The psalmist can be seen drawing a distinction between our God and the gods of others. Those people have a god of the depths, a god of the mountains, a god of the sea, and of the earth. Our people have one God who created all of those things and rules over them. In part it is cultural competitiveness, as one group makes light of another in order to win some contest in which our side makes the rules and decides the outcome. We rig the contest so that we win. The question continues to this day; are there multiple deities from which to choose or is there one?
We make the statement of faith that there is only one God. Then it gets interesting. Some people go on to say that this group or that group couldn’t possibly worship our God because they have other demands placed on them by their faith. In other cases, there are multiple deities with separate names and attributes, with different realms of power and influence. Some of us are quick to dismiss these folks as not worshipping the God we worship. If there is only one God, and I believe that, each religion touches a differing interpretation of who God is and the demands placed on us because of that.
I tend to see friends and family in a positive light. I know people who do not hold the same opinion of these people. Is one of us right and one of us wrong? Perhaps. It is just as likely that we have had different sets of experiences with this person. Does it seem as if we are talking about two different people when we apply our various filters to our opinions on someone? Definitely. Despite our different experiences and opinions we have the same person in mind. If we can do that with each other, we can certainly do that with God, who is beyond our ability to know and comprehend fully.
September 5, 2016
LCM
Monday, August 29, 2016
Psalm Meditation 846
Proper 18
September 4, 2016
Psalm 56
1 Be gracious to me, O God, for people trample on me; all day long foes oppress me;
2 my enemies trample on me all day long, for many fight against me. O Most High,
3 when I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I am not afraid; what can flesh do to me?
5 All day long they seek to injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.
6 They stir up strife, they lurk, they watch my steps. As they hoped to have my life,
7 so repay them for their crime; in wrath cast down the peoples, O God!
8 You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your record?
9 Then my enemies will retreat in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.
10 In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise,
11 in God I trust; I am not afraid. What can a mere mortal do to me?
12 My vows to you I must perform, O God; I will render thank offerings to you.
13 For you have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from falling, so that I may walk before God in the light of life.
(NRSV)
There are a variety of ways of seeing God at work in our lives. God has been seen as a distant personality, the ‘unmoved mover’ who set the world in motion and stepped back to watch it all unfold mechanical precision. God is not seen as either for or against us; God is simply out there somewhere watching the cogs of creation mesh together as they were created to do.
God has also been seen as very hands on; fighting our battles for us and actively participating in the day to day goings on of the world. We call on God to fix or change something, and if we have been good enough it happens. God acts on behalf of those who toe the line, follow the rules and behave themselves.
And God has been our buddy, who tags along and helps us through the day by cheering us on in the good times and standing with us for moral support in the bad times. In some cases, this buddy idea gets taken to an extreme in which God supports us and encourages us to do whatever we think is the best course of action no matter what.
I am sure that each of these concepts has a bit of truth in it. There are other ways of seeing God at work in our lives that don’t come immediately to mind. As we find ourselves behaving differently around various groups of people, God is seen by each of us in way that fits who we are at the time.
“This I know, that God is for me.” This one sentence from the psalm speaks volumes. No matter how we see God, how we behave in the presence of God; God is for us. God wants us to be the very best we can be, whether we are close to or far from that goal.
August 29, 2016
LCM
Proper 18
September 4, 2016
Psalm 56
1 Be gracious to me, O God, for people trample on me; all day long foes oppress me;
2 my enemies trample on me all day long, for many fight against me. O Most High,
3 when I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I am not afraid; what can flesh do to me?
5 All day long they seek to injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.
6 They stir up strife, they lurk, they watch my steps. As they hoped to have my life,
7 so repay them for their crime; in wrath cast down the peoples, O God!
8 You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your record?
9 Then my enemies will retreat in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.
10 In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise,
11 in God I trust; I am not afraid. What can a mere mortal do to me?
12 My vows to you I must perform, O God; I will render thank offerings to you.
13 For you have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from falling, so that I may walk before God in the light of life.
(NRSV)
There are a variety of ways of seeing God at work in our lives. God has been seen as a distant personality, the ‘unmoved mover’ who set the world in motion and stepped back to watch it all unfold mechanical precision. God is not seen as either for or against us; God is simply out there somewhere watching the cogs of creation mesh together as they were created to do.
God has also been seen as very hands on; fighting our battles for us and actively participating in the day to day goings on of the world. We call on God to fix or change something, and if we have been good enough it happens. God acts on behalf of those who toe the line, follow the rules and behave themselves.
And God has been our buddy, who tags along and helps us through the day by cheering us on in the good times and standing with us for moral support in the bad times. In some cases, this buddy idea gets taken to an extreme in which God supports us and encourages us to do whatever we think is the best course of action no matter what.
I am sure that each of these concepts has a bit of truth in it. There are other ways of seeing God at work in our lives that don’t come immediately to mind. As we find ourselves behaving differently around various groups of people, God is seen by each of us in way that fits who we are at the time.
“This I know, that God is for me.” This one sentence from the psalm speaks volumes. No matter how we see God, how we behave in the presence of God; God is for us. God wants us to be the very best we can be, whether we are close to or far from that goal.
August 29, 2016
LCM
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
Psalm Meditation 845
Proper 17
August 28, 2016
Psalm 145
1 I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you, and praise your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall laud your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 The might of your awesome deeds shall be proclaimed, and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall celebrate the fame of your abundant goodness, and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
8 The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The LORD is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your faithful shall bless you.
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power,
12 to make known to all people your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The LORD is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.
14 The LORD upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.
17 The LORD is just in all his ways, and kind in all his doings.
18 The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of all who fear him; he also hears their cry, and saves them.
20 The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD, and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.
(NRSV)
For most of us mighty deeds are the stuff of legends, stories and news reports. They are the big picture activities of those who live lives in the rarified air of heroes. And those kinds of actions do take strength and might. The psalmist is referring to those acts of strength and power in some of the verses. The one who leads folks into battle, who fights for right and freedom, is a hero to be lifted up in praise. This part of the work and wonder of God is amazing and is told in gasping awe at the power God displays in these victorious moments.
The psalmist tells of other mighty deeds as well. These are the ones that tell of the compassion of God, which is a strength of another kind. We hear these stories when our attention is turned that direction, the stories that put a human face on both victims and individual heroes. At other times these stories happen without fanfare. The other mighty deeds are the acts of compassion that lift folks up anonymously and regularly. These too are mighty acts of God.
Whether God is out in front leading the charge against evil forces or working quietly in the background to give aid and comfort to those whose lives are damaged by evil acts, large and small, the psalmist speaks the praise of God. The psalmist also invites us to offer praise and blessing for all the ways God works. As people of God we act in big and small ways to offer hope, help and healing to those around us so that, “all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.”
August 23, 2016
LCM
Proper 17
August 28, 2016
Psalm 145
1 I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever.
2 Every day I will bless you, and praise your name forever and ever.
3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall laud your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
6 The might of your awesome deeds shall be proclaimed, and I will declare your greatness.
7 They shall celebrate the fame of your abundant goodness, and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
8 The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The LORD is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your faithful shall bless you.
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power,
12 to make known to all people your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The LORD is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.
14 The LORD upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.
17 The LORD is just in all his ways, and kind in all his doings.
18 The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desire of all who fear him; he also hears their cry, and saves them.
20 The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD, and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.
(NRSV)
For most of us mighty deeds are the stuff of legends, stories and news reports. They are the big picture activities of those who live lives in the rarified air of heroes. And those kinds of actions do take strength and might. The psalmist is referring to those acts of strength and power in some of the verses. The one who leads folks into battle, who fights for right and freedom, is a hero to be lifted up in praise. This part of the work and wonder of God is amazing and is told in gasping awe at the power God displays in these victorious moments.
The psalmist tells of other mighty deeds as well. These are the ones that tell of the compassion of God, which is a strength of another kind. We hear these stories when our attention is turned that direction, the stories that put a human face on both victims and individual heroes. At other times these stories happen without fanfare. The other mighty deeds are the acts of compassion that lift folks up anonymously and regularly. These too are mighty acts of God.
Whether God is out in front leading the charge against evil forces or working quietly in the background to give aid and comfort to those whose lives are damaged by evil acts, large and small, the psalmist speaks the praise of God. The psalmist also invites us to offer praise and blessing for all the ways God works. As people of God we act in big and small ways to offer hope, help and healing to those around us so that, “all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.”
August 23, 2016
LCM
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
Psalm Meditation 844
Proper 16
August 21, 2016
Psalm 6
1 O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger, or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror.
3 My soul also is struck with terror, while you, O LORD—how long?
4 Turn, O LORD, save my life; deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5 For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who can give you praise?
6 I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.
7 My eyes waste away because of grief; they grow weak because of all my foes.
8 Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
9 The LORD has heard my supplication; the LORD accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and struck with terror; they shall turn back, and in a moment be put to shame.
(NRSV)
One of the most memorable statements I have heard about God is, “If God can’t handle your anger, then why do you have it?” It has freed me to yell at God, to vent my anger, to things off my chest in a way that is more helpful than hurtful. Instead of throwing things like dishes or punches we can stand up and rail against God for the seeming unfairness of the life we are living and the lives of those around us. The psalmist is also free to complain to God about an illness or other calamity of life.
A seminary classmate reminded us, in a discussion of the psalms, that not all of our enemies are other people. Especially in a time in which disease and illness was thought to be caused by evil spirits and demons, enemies lurked in seen and unseen spaces of our lives. The issue is not who it is acting in the psalmist’s life so much as why God has not stepped in to end the situation at hand. Grief and pain, whatever the cause, is a drain on body, mind and spirit. If only God would step in everything would be alright and the psalmist could return to the worship and praise of God.
Finally, the psalmist realizes that God has heard this prayer for relief and it will come. In God’s good time something will happen that will put an end to this suffering and all will be well with the psalmist. We too receive the assurance that God has heard us and is at work in our lives. Whether we have lashed out in anger or used a calmer tone we will know that God is with us in some way.
August 16, 2016
LCM
Proper 16
August 21, 2016
Psalm 6
1 O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger, or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror.
3 My soul also is struck with terror, while you, O LORD—how long?
4 Turn, O LORD, save my life; deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5 For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who can give you praise?
6 I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.
7 My eyes waste away because of grief; they grow weak because of all my foes.
8 Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
9 The LORD has heard my supplication; the LORD accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and struck with terror; they shall turn back, and in a moment be put to shame.
(NRSV)
One of the most memorable statements I have heard about God is, “If God can’t handle your anger, then why do you have it?” It has freed me to yell at God, to vent my anger, to things off my chest in a way that is more helpful than hurtful. Instead of throwing things like dishes or punches we can stand up and rail against God for the seeming unfairness of the life we are living and the lives of those around us. The psalmist is also free to complain to God about an illness or other calamity of life.
A seminary classmate reminded us, in a discussion of the psalms, that not all of our enemies are other people. Especially in a time in which disease and illness was thought to be caused by evil spirits and demons, enemies lurked in seen and unseen spaces of our lives. The issue is not who it is acting in the psalmist’s life so much as why God has not stepped in to end the situation at hand. Grief and pain, whatever the cause, is a drain on body, mind and spirit. If only God would step in everything would be alright and the psalmist could return to the worship and praise of God.
Finally, the psalmist realizes that God has heard this prayer for relief and it will come. In God’s good time something will happen that will put an end to this suffering and all will be well with the psalmist. We too receive the assurance that God has heard us and is at work in our lives. Whether we have lashed out in anger or used a calmer tone we will know that God is with us in some way.
August 16, 2016
LCM
Monday, August 8, 2016
Psalm Meditation 843
Proper 15
August 14, 2016
Psalm 47
1 Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with loud songs of joy.
2 For the LORD, the Most High, is awesome, a great king over all the earth.
3 He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet.
4 He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah
5 God has gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises.
7 For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.
8 God is king over the nations; God sits on his holy throne.
9 The princes of the peoples gather as the people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; he is highly exalted.
(NRSV)
I grew up knowing that clapping and other outward displays of appreciation and emotion were inappropriate for the worship setting. Worship was a deathly serious practice and anything that fluctuated from that norm was seen as a bad thing. John Wesley, one of the founders of the Methodist/Wesleyan family of denominations often spoke against ‘enthusiasm,’ vocal and physical demonstrations, during worship. It is a very Puritan mind-set, that worship is staid, serious and interior, even for a congregational gathering. We are at our best with our singing, ‘lustily and with good courage.’
We have claimed and bought into our puritanical roots when we frown at any outward display during worship. It is said that the most common form of appreciation for humor among Methodists is, ‘to smile as loudly as possible.’ So, what do we do with psalms that tell us to clap and sing and shout? We have this wonderful biblical warrant to express ourselves in a variety of ways, from calm humility to the claps and shouts of this psalm. Which one is correct, proper, biblical even?
The best way to worship is the one that works in your life. The difficulty comes when we expect others to worship in our comfort zone. When the majority of the congregation is actively participatory in style, the one who prefers to sit quietly is usually accepted graciously, even if a mite curiously. When the majority style is meditative participation, the one who is vocal and active is looked on as an interruption who needs to be squelched and perhaps even squeezed out. In both cases, the one who demands an extreme version of their own style of worship can damage the worship mood for everyone.
This psalm says to clap and shout and sing with joy, others counsel that we sit in awed silence in the presence of God. Each style has its place in worship and who am I to say that two or more styles can’t happen in the same room at the same time. The focus of our worship is in God. A mason was laying brick at a parsonage in which I lived and I said, “I bet you have seen some interesting things in your life.” and he responded, “I tell my crew, ‘If you are doing your job you won’t have time to look in the windows and doors you are working around.’” So it is with worship; when we are focused on God we won’t have time or energy to focus on the worship style of those around us even as we participate together as a worshipping community.
August 8, 2016
LCM
Proper 15
August 14, 2016
Psalm 47
1 Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with loud songs of joy.
2 For the LORD, the Most High, is awesome, a great king over all the earth.
3 He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet.
4 He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah
5 God has gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises.
7 For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.
8 God is king over the nations; God sits on his holy throne.
9 The princes of the peoples gather as the people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; he is highly exalted.
(NRSV)
I grew up knowing that clapping and other outward displays of appreciation and emotion were inappropriate for the worship setting. Worship was a deathly serious practice and anything that fluctuated from that norm was seen as a bad thing. John Wesley, one of the founders of the Methodist/Wesleyan family of denominations often spoke against ‘enthusiasm,’ vocal and physical demonstrations, during worship. It is a very Puritan mind-set, that worship is staid, serious and interior, even for a congregational gathering. We are at our best with our singing, ‘lustily and with good courage.’
We have claimed and bought into our puritanical roots when we frown at any outward display during worship. It is said that the most common form of appreciation for humor among Methodists is, ‘to smile as loudly as possible.’ So, what do we do with psalms that tell us to clap and sing and shout? We have this wonderful biblical warrant to express ourselves in a variety of ways, from calm humility to the claps and shouts of this psalm. Which one is correct, proper, biblical even?
The best way to worship is the one that works in your life. The difficulty comes when we expect others to worship in our comfort zone. When the majority of the congregation is actively participatory in style, the one who prefers to sit quietly is usually accepted graciously, even if a mite curiously. When the majority style is meditative participation, the one who is vocal and active is looked on as an interruption who needs to be squelched and perhaps even squeezed out. In both cases, the one who demands an extreme version of their own style of worship can damage the worship mood for everyone.
This psalm says to clap and shout and sing with joy, others counsel that we sit in awed silence in the presence of God. Each style has its place in worship and who am I to say that two or more styles can’t happen in the same room at the same time. The focus of our worship is in God. A mason was laying brick at a parsonage in which I lived and I said, “I bet you have seen some interesting things in your life.” and he responded, “I tell my crew, ‘If you are doing your job you won’t have time to look in the windows and doors you are working around.’” So it is with worship; when we are focused on God we won’t have time or energy to focus on the worship style of those around us even as we participate together as a worshipping community.
August 8, 2016
LCM
Monday, August 1, 2016
Psalm Meditation 842
Proper 14
August 7, 2016
Psalm 104
1Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, you are very great. You are clothed with honor and majesty,
2 wrapped in light as with a garment. You stretch out the heavens like a tent,
3 you set the beams of your chambers on the waters, you make the clouds your chariot, you ride on the wings of the wind,
4 you make the winds your messengers, fire and flame your ministers.
5 You set the earth on its foundations, so that it shall never be shaken.
6 You cover it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.
7 At your rebuke they flee; at the sound of your thunder they take to flight.
8 They rose up to the mountains, ran down to the valleys to the place that you appointed for them.
9 You set a boundary that they may not pass, so that they might not again cover the earth.
10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills,
11 giving drink to every wild animal; the wild asses quench their thirst.
12 By the streams the birds of the air have their habitation; they sing among the branches.
13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.
14 You cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for people to use,
to bring forth food from the earth,
15 and wine to gladden the human heart, oil to make the face shine, and bread to strengthen the human heart.
16 The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 In them the birds build their nests; the stork has its home in the fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the coneys.
19 You have made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting.
20 You make darkness, and it is night, when all the animals of the forest come creeping out.
21 The young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they withdraw and lie down in their dens.
23 People go out to their work and to their labor until the evening.
24 O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
25 Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great.
26 There go the ships, and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it.
27 These all look to you to give them their food in due season;
28 when you give to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
30 When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.
31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works—
32 who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the LORD.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more.
Bless the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
When we praise God it is often for a single thing. We watch a sunrise or sunset and praise God for the beauty of the event. Something good happens in our lives and we praise God for the wonderfulness of that event. We rarely do what the psalmist has done, giving thanks for parts of creation that are not a part of our daily life. We do not notice that God sets boundaries for lakes and streams, rivers and oceans until those waters break out of their normal courses. Even then we are rightly concerned about the excess rather than grateful for the normal course of waterways around us. I don’t stop to marvel at the providence of God for squirrels and chipmunks; I notice that they take up all the space on feeders set out for the birds. I enjoy the birds at the feeders without noticing that I have become a participant in providing for the birds as well as the other critters that frequent our feeders.
The psalmist looks around and lifts up a variety of reasons to be thankful for all that God is and does around us to provide for various parts of the world and its inhabitants. Sun and moon, mountains and valleys, grass and cattle, wine and bread each part and pair are reason to lift up a word of thanks, blessing and praise to God. The creative activity of God is reason to rejoice and sing, to celebrate and praise.
The fact that there is anything normal is reason to thank God. That we depend on the sun coming up and the moon going through the cycle of waxing and waning is reason to thank God for a recognizable pattern to the world in which we find ourselves. While we can go through a day and see it as dull and boring because nothing exciting happened, we would do well to thank God for those days as a reminder that the orderliness of our day is a gift that God gives to us. The ordinariness of a day means that God is present with us.
August 1, 2016
LCM
Proper 14
August 7, 2016
Psalm 104
1Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, you are very great. You are clothed with honor and majesty,
2 wrapped in light as with a garment. You stretch out the heavens like a tent,
3 you set the beams of your chambers on the waters, you make the clouds your chariot, you ride on the wings of the wind,
4 you make the winds your messengers, fire and flame your ministers.
5 You set the earth on its foundations, so that it shall never be shaken.
6 You cover it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.
7 At your rebuke they flee; at the sound of your thunder they take to flight.
8 They rose up to the mountains, ran down to the valleys to the place that you appointed for them.
9 You set a boundary that they may not pass, so that they might not again cover the earth.
10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills,
11 giving drink to every wild animal; the wild asses quench their thirst.
12 By the streams the birds of the air have their habitation; they sing among the branches.
13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.
14 You cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for people to use,
to bring forth food from the earth,
15 and wine to gladden the human heart, oil to make the face shine, and bread to strengthen the human heart.
16 The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 In them the birds build their nests; the stork has its home in the fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the coneys.
19 You have made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting.
20 You make darkness, and it is night, when all the animals of the forest come creeping out.
21 The young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they withdraw and lie down in their dens.
23 People go out to their work and to their labor until the evening.
24 O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
25 Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great.
26 There go the ships, and Leviathan that you formed to sport in it.
27 These all look to you to give them their food in due season;
28 when you give to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
30 When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.
31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works—
32 who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the LORD.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more.
Bless the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
When we praise God it is often for a single thing. We watch a sunrise or sunset and praise God for the beauty of the event. Something good happens in our lives and we praise God for the wonderfulness of that event. We rarely do what the psalmist has done, giving thanks for parts of creation that are not a part of our daily life. We do not notice that God sets boundaries for lakes and streams, rivers and oceans until those waters break out of their normal courses. Even then we are rightly concerned about the excess rather than grateful for the normal course of waterways around us. I don’t stop to marvel at the providence of God for squirrels and chipmunks; I notice that they take up all the space on feeders set out for the birds. I enjoy the birds at the feeders without noticing that I have become a participant in providing for the birds as well as the other critters that frequent our feeders.
The psalmist looks around and lifts up a variety of reasons to be thankful for all that God is and does around us to provide for various parts of the world and its inhabitants. Sun and moon, mountains and valleys, grass and cattle, wine and bread each part and pair are reason to lift up a word of thanks, blessing and praise to God. The creative activity of God is reason to rejoice and sing, to celebrate and praise.
The fact that there is anything normal is reason to thank God. That we depend on the sun coming up and the moon going through the cycle of waxing and waning is reason to thank God for a recognizable pattern to the world in which we find ourselves. While we can go through a day and see it as dull and boring because nothing exciting happened, we would do well to thank God for those days as a reminder that the orderliness of our day is a gift that God gives to us. The ordinariness of a day means that God is present with us.
August 1, 2016
LCM
Monday, July 25, 2016
Psalm Meditation 841
Proper 13
July 31, 2016
Psalm 97
1 The LORD is king! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad!
2 Clouds and thick darkness are all around him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire goes before him, and consumes his adversaries on every side.
4 His lightnings light up the world; the earth sees and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth.
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness; and all the peoples behold his glory.
7 All worshipers of images are put to shame, those who make their boast in worthless idols; all gods bow down before him.
8 Zion hears and is glad, and the towns of Judah rejoice, because of your judgments, O God.
9 For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.
10 The LORD loves those who hate evil; he guards the lives of his faithful; he rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light dawns for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name!
(NRSV)
The psalmist calls us to rejoice in the presence of God. For some people that means wearing the biggest smile anyone has ever seen on that particular face. For others it means a body shaking laugh with a bit of shouting thrown in. For still others it means dancing and singing that employs all the person’s energy and takes up all the space available for the celebration. That we each rejoice in different ways does not mean that one is more joyful than the other so much as it means that we express our joy quite differently.
As we express our joy in different ways, we also express our joy for a variety of reasons. This psalm could be a celebration of a victory over an adversary at the hand of God or awe at a natural phenomenon witnessed by the psalmist. Any one of us who rejoices will do so for a variety of reasons. We may revel in the beauty of a sunrise or sunset. We may celebrate the joy of new birth or another milestone in the life of a loved one.
For a variety of reasons and in a variety of ways we rejoice in the presence and in the activity of God in the world in and around us. As we rejoice in God’s activity we find ourselves drawn closer to God and the people of God. As we draw closer we find new and deeper reasons to rejoice in God’s presence as well as a desire to be ever more fully in the presence of God surrounded by God’s people.
July 25, 2016
LCM
Proper 13
July 31, 2016
Psalm 97
1 The LORD is king! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad!
2 Clouds and thick darkness are all around him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
3 Fire goes before him, and consumes his adversaries on every side.
4 His lightnings light up the world; the earth sees and trembles.
5 The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth.
6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness; and all the peoples behold his glory.
7 All worshipers of images are put to shame, those who make their boast in worthless idols; all gods bow down before him.
8 Zion hears and is glad, and the towns of Judah rejoice, because of your judgments, O God.
9 For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.
10 The LORD loves those who hate evil; he guards the lives of his faithful; he rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light dawns for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name!
(NRSV)
The psalmist calls us to rejoice in the presence of God. For some people that means wearing the biggest smile anyone has ever seen on that particular face. For others it means a body shaking laugh with a bit of shouting thrown in. For still others it means dancing and singing that employs all the person’s energy and takes up all the space available for the celebration. That we each rejoice in different ways does not mean that one is more joyful than the other so much as it means that we express our joy quite differently.
As we express our joy in different ways, we also express our joy for a variety of reasons. This psalm could be a celebration of a victory over an adversary at the hand of God or awe at a natural phenomenon witnessed by the psalmist. Any one of us who rejoices will do so for a variety of reasons. We may revel in the beauty of a sunrise or sunset. We may celebrate the joy of new birth or another milestone in the life of a loved one.
For a variety of reasons and in a variety of ways we rejoice in the presence and in the activity of God in the world in and around us. As we rejoice in God’s activity we find ourselves drawn closer to God and the people of God. As we draw closer we find new and deeper reasons to rejoice in God’s presence as well as a desire to be ever more fully in the presence of God surrounded by God’s people.
July 25, 2016
LCM
Monday, July 18, 2016
Psalm Meditation 840
Proper 12
July 25, 2016
Psalm 54
1 Save me, O God, by your name, and vindicate me by your might.
2 Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For the insolent have risen against me, the ruthless seek my life; they do not set God before them. Selah
4 But surely, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.
5 He will repay my enemies for their evil. In your faithfulness, put an end to them.
6 With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O LORD, for it is good.
7 For he has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.
(NRSV)
When I am in an argument, I see myself as right and the other person or group as in the wrong. If that were not the case there would be no reason for the argument in the first place. That I see the disagreement through my own set of filters is normal and understandable. There are cases in which there is a hard and fast answer to the question at hand and those on the wrong side of the question are simply being belligerent or playing devil’s advocate. In most questions there is some nuance to the discussion that makes it a worthy topic.
The psalmist is probably facing more than verbal opposition. The nuance part of the issue is still present. There is something to be gained by those on both sides. The adversary wants something that the psalmist has. The ‘evil’ folks are convinced that the psalmist does not deserve this something, whether it is dignity, a right or privilege, or a material benefit of some kind. Whatever the situation the psalmist is on the weak side of the argument. These ‘others’ have power, influence and resources to take what the psalmist has; unless God intervenes to reset the balance of power.
Being stronger than my opponent does not make me right. Being weaker than my opponent does not make me wrong. Winning and losing is not about right and wrong as much as it is about power and influence. The interesting thing in the psalm is that one side calls on God to join the fight. Much as we would like to believe that God picks sides, it does not seem to be the case. God points us in the direction of the truth. The truth is not something that can be held by one person over another. The truth is found in some measure on every side. The task for each of us is to discover my truth and then listen and learn from the truth held by those around us.
July 18, 2016
LCM
Proper 12
July 25, 2016
Psalm 54
1 Save me, O God, by your name, and vindicate me by your might.
2 Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.
3 For the insolent have risen against me, the ruthless seek my life; they do not set God before them. Selah
4 But surely, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.
5 He will repay my enemies for their evil. In your faithfulness, put an end to them.
6 With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O LORD, for it is good.
7 For he has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.
(NRSV)
When I am in an argument, I see myself as right and the other person or group as in the wrong. If that were not the case there would be no reason for the argument in the first place. That I see the disagreement through my own set of filters is normal and understandable. There are cases in which there is a hard and fast answer to the question at hand and those on the wrong side of the question are simply being belligerent or playing devil’s advocate. In most questions there is some nuance to the discussion that makes it a worthy topic.
The psalmist is probably facing more than verbal opposition. The nuance part of the issue is still present. There is something to be gained by those on both sides. The adversary wants something that the psalmist has. The ‘evil’ folks are convinced that the psalmist does not deserve this something, whether it is dignity, a right or privilege, or a material benefit of some kind. Whatever the situation the psalmist is on the weak side of the argument. These ‘others’ have power, influence and resources to take what the psalmist has; unless God intervenes to reset the balance of power.
Being stronger than my opponent does not make me right. Being weaker than my opponent does not make me wrong. Winning and losing is not about right and wrong as much as it is about power and influence. The interesting thing in the psalm is that one side calls on God to join the fight. Much as we would like to believe that God picks sides, it does not seem to be the case. God points us in the direction of the truth. The truth is not something that can be held by one person over another. The truth is found in some measure on every side. The task for each of us is to discover my truth and then listen and learn from the truth held by those around us.
July 18, 2016
LCM
Monday, July 11, 2016
Psalm Meditation 839
Proper 11
July 17, 2016
Psalm 147
1 Praise the LORD! How good it is to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The LORD lifts up the downtrodden; he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.
8 He covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He gives to the animals their food, and to the young ravens when they cry.
10 His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
11 but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.
12 Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.
14 He grants peace within your borders; he fills you with the finest of wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down hail like crumbs— who can stand before his cold?
18 He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
The world around us puts great stock in those among us who are the best at what they do. We want to be on the winning side and we idolize those who put in the effort to be the brightest and the best in their area of expertise. We want to know that the rest of the world envies us, or at least our chosen champions. In the US, we cultivate a mindset that if we are not among the best in the world at something it probably doesn’t matter. We want to win and we have been known to emphasize winning over everything else.
The psalmist describes God as one whose excellence is based in loving and giving. God provides for us, cares for us and watches over us out of a steadfast and abiding love for us. It has nothing to do with whether we deserve it, these gifts come out of the heart of God as a gift to us. God does take pleasure in those who stand in the divine presence with open mouthed awe soaking up and reflecting the love of God as a source of hope and wholeness in their lives.
There will always be a place for champions whose claim to fame is based in individual excellence powered by a drive to succeed; to be the best. The psalmist reminds us that there is also a place for excellence powered by the steadfast love of God. It isn’t about being the best so much as offering what we have as a gift to those around us. And the two types of excellence are not even mutually exclusive. It is possible to excel in an area of expertise and to be loving and generous with those around us. The important part is to be in awe of God, hope in steadfast love and Praise the LORD!
July 11, 2016
LCM
Proper 11
July 17, 2016
Psalm 147
1 Praise the LORD! How good it is to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The LORD lifts up the downtrodden; he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.
8 He covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He gives to the animals their food, and to the young ravens when they cry.
10 His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
11 but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.
12 Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.
14 He grants peace within your borders; he fills you with the finest of wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down hail like crumbs— who can stand before his cold?
18 He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
The world around us puts great stock in those among us who are the best at what they do. We want to be on the winning side and we idolize those who put in the effort to be the brightest and the best in their area of expertise. We want to know that the rest of the world envies us, or at least our chosen champions. In the US, we cultivate a mindset that if we are not among the best in the world at something it probably doesn’t matter. We want to win and we have been known to emphasize winning over everything else.
The psalmist describes God as one whose excellence is based in loving and giving. God provides for us, cares for us and watches over us out of a steadfast and abiding love for us. It has nothing to do with whether we deserve it, these gifts come out of the heart of God as a gift to us. God does take pleasure in those who stand in the divine presence with open mouthed awe soaking up and reflecting the love of God as a source of hope and wholeness in their lives.
There will always be a place for champions whose claim to fame is based in individual excellence powered by a drive to succeed; to be the best. The psalmist reminds us that there is also a place for excellence powered by the steadfast love of God. It isn’t about being the best so much as offering what we have as a gift to those around us. And the two types of excellence are not even mutually exclusive. It is possible to excel in an area of expertise and to be loving and generous with those around us. The important part is to be in awe of God, hope in steadfast love and Praise the LORD!
July 11, 2016
LCM
Monday, July 4, 2016
Psalm Meditation 838
Proper 10
July 10, 2016
Psalm 4
1 Answer me when I call, O God of my right! You gave me room when I was in distress. Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.
2 How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame? How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies? Selah
3 But know that the LORD has set apart the faithful for himself; the LORD hears when I call to him.
4 When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent. Selah
5 Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the LORD.
6 There are many who say, “O that we might see some good! Let the light of your face shine on us, O LORD!”
7 You have put gladness in my heart more than when their grain and wine abound.
8 I will both lie down and sleep in peace; for you alone, O LORD, make me lie down in safety.
(NRSV)
It is so much easier to define sin when we look at the actions and imagine the thoughts of other people. We know what behaviors are sinful because we have memorized the catalog of sins that other people are most likely to commit. At that point we become experts and are quick to pass judgment on those who do things we find abhorrent. We point our fingers at them and look to God for confirmation of our opinion. God nods that there is sin in progress without pointing to the sinner so we assume that our fingers are doing the pointing for God.
The psalmist reminds us that we are not as right as we assume we are. “When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent.” When we are sure that we are right and others are wrong we do well to lie down for a moment and think about what is going on. Yes, this other is probably guilty of some sin, and perhaps even guilty of the sin we see and would gladly point out. And, we may be guilty as well; guilty of judging in the name of God without the authority or perspective of God. We are quite likely guilty of a list of sins that escape our notice for one reason or another.
The psalmist also counsels us to give our heads and hearts a moment to catch up to each other. By being silent for a time we make time to realize that this other may not be as bad as we made them out to be as well as seeing that we may not be as pure as we assume we are. If we are to correct one another in love, we begin with love. If we can’t find it in ourselves to build the relationship that will lead to mutual correction, we serve God much better by offering right sacrifices and putting our trust in the LORD.
July 4, 2016
LCM
Proper 10
July 10, 2016
Psalm 4
1 Answer me when I call, O God of my right! You gave me room when I was in distress. Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.
2 How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame? How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies? Selah
3 But know that the LORD has set apart the faithful for himself; the LORD hears when I call to him.
4 When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent. Selah
5 Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the LORD.
6 There are many who say, “O that we might see some good! Let the light of your face shine on us, O LORD!”
7 You have put gladness in my heart more than when their grain and wine abound.
8 I will both lie down and sleep in peace; for you alone, O LORD, make me lie down in safety.
(NRSV)
It is so much easier to define sin when we look at the actions and imagine the thoughts of other people. We know what behaviors are sinful because we have memorized the catalog of sins that other people are most likely to commit. At that point we become experts and are quick to pass judgment on those who do things we find abhorrent. We point our fingers at them and look to God for confirmation of our opinion. God nods that there is sin in progress without pointing to the sinner so we assume that our fingers are doing the pointing for God.
The psalmist reminds us that we are not as right as we assume we are. “When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent.” When we are sure that we are right and others are wrong we do well to lie down for a moment and think about what is going on. Yes, this other is probably guilty of some sin, and perhaps even guilty of the sin we see and would gladly point out. And, we may be guilty as well; guilty of judging in the name of God without the authority or perspective of God. We are quite likely guilty of a list of sins that escape our notice for one reason or another.
The psalmist also counsels us to give our heads and hearts a moment to catch up to each other. By being silent for a time we make time to realize that this other may not be as bad as we made them out to be as well as seeing that we may not be as pure as we assume we are. If we are to correct one another in love, we begin with love. If we can’t find it in ourselves to build the relationship that will lead to mutual correction, we serve God much better by offering right sacrifices and putting our trust in the LORD.
July 4, 2016
LCM
Monday, June 27, 2016
Psalm Meditation 837
Proper 9
July 3, 2016
Psalm 49
1 Hear this, all you peoples; give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
2 both low and high, rich and poor together.
3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
4 I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the harp.
5 Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me,
6 those who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches?
7 Truly, no ransom avails for one’s life, there is no price one can give to God for it.
8 For the ransom of life is costly, and can never suffice,
9 that one should live on forever and never see the grave.
10 When we look at the wise, they die; fool and dolt perish together
and leave their wealth to others.
11 Their graves are their homes forever, their dwelling places to all generations, though they named lands their own.
12 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp; they are like the animals that perish.
13 Such is the fate of the foolhardy, the end of those who are pleased with their lot. Selah
14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol; Death shall be their shepherd;
straight to the grave they descend, and their form shall waste away; Sheol shall be their home.
15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me. Selah
16 Do not be afraid when some become rich, when the wealth of their houses increases.
17 For when they die they will carry nothing away; their wealth will not go down after them.
18 Though in their lifetime they count themselves happy—for you are praised when you do well for yourself—
19 they will go to the company of their ancestors, who will never again see the light.
20 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp; they are like the animals that perish.
(NRSV)
At some point in each of our lives we convince ourselves that the rules by which everyone lives do not apply to me. I will be the one lives forever. At the very least, I will be the one who gets to take all I have with me when I die. Whether I live forever or take my stuff with me, I will have bested everyone else through my life. It is a delightful fantasy in which to engage, however the psalmist reminds us that each of us will die and when we do we take none of the wealth of the world with us. While fame, fortune and long life are a good thing in this life those credits don’t transfer into the presence of God.
Wealth that lasts from one life to the next is the wealth of relationships. To know and be known by God is more important than all the years and all the wealth we can amass in this life. Loving relationships with others gives us another kind of immortality as those who survive us remember us fondly and do all in their power to preserve our memory for those who come after us. It is much better to be remembered by God and by those around us than to have great stores of treasure and many years to enjoy those treasures.
Given the choice between piles of treasure and treasured relationships the psalmist reminds us to make the choice that carries over into the fully realized presence of God. Yes, people are praised for having great stores of treasures in this life, however there is so much better available to us. It is better to create memorable relationships, especially a relationship with God.
June 27, 2016
LCM
Proper 9
July 3, 2016
Psalm 49
1 Hear this, all you peoples; give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
2 both low and high, rich and poor together.
3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
4 I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the harp.
5 Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me,
6 those who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches?
7 Truly, no ransom avails for one’s life, there is no price one can give to God for it.
8 For the ransom of life is costly, and can never suffice,
9 that one should live on forever and never see the grave.
10 When we look at the wise, they die; fool and dolt perish together
and leave their wealth to others.
11 Their graves are their homes forever, their dwelling places to all generations, though they named lands their own.
12 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp; they are like the animals that perish.
13 Such is the fate of the foolhardy, the end of those who are pleased with their lot. Selah
14 Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol; Death shall be their shepherd;
straight to the grave they descend, and their form shall waste away; Sheol shall be their home.
15 But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol, for he will receive me. Selah
16 Do not be afraid when some become rich, when the wealth of their houses increases.
17 For when they die they will carry nothing away; their wealth will not go down after them.
18 Though in their lifetime they count themselves happy—for you are praised when you do well for yourself—
19 they will go to the company of their ancestors, who will never again see the light.
20 Mortals cannot abide in their pomp; they are like the animals that perish.
(NRSV)
At some point in each of our lives we convince ourselves that the rules by which everyone lives do not apply to me. I will be the one lives forever. At the very least, I will be the one who gets to take all I have with me when I die. Whether I live forever or take my stuff with me, I will have bested everyone else through my life. It is a delightful fantasy in which to engage, however the psalmist reminds us that each of us will die and when we do we take none of the wealth of the world with us. While fame, fortune and long life are a good thing in this life those credits don’t transfer into the presence of God.
Wealth that lasts from one life to the next is the wealth of relationships. To know and be known by God is more important than all the years and all the wealth we can amass in this life. Loving relationships with others gives us another kind of immortality as those who survive us remember us fondly and do all in their power to preserve our memory for those who come after us. It is much better to be remembered by God and by those around us than to have great stores of treasure and many years to enjoy those treasures.
Given the choice between piles of treasure and treasured relationships the psalmist reminds us to make the choice that carries over into the fully realized presence of God. Yes, people are praised for having great stores of treasures in this life, however there is so much better available to us. It is better to create memorable relationships, especially a relationship with God.
June 27, 2016
LCM
Monday, June 20, 2016
Psalm Meditation 836
Proper 8
June 26, 2016
Psalm 102
1 LORD, hear my prayer! Let my cry reach you!
2 Don’t hide your face from me in my time of trouble! Listen to me! Answer me quickly as I cry out!
3 Because my days disappear like smoke, my bones are burned up as if in an oven;
4 my heart is smashed like dried-up grass. I even forget to eat my food
5 because of my intense groans. My bones are protruding from my skin.
6 I’m like some wild owl—like some screech owl in the desert.
7 I lie awake all night. I’m all alone like a bird on a roof.
8 All day long my enemies make fun of me; those who mock me curse using my name!
9 I’ve been eating ashes instead of bread. I’ve been mixing tears into my drinks
10 because of your anger and wrath, because you picked me up and threw me away.
11 My days are like a shadow soon gone. I’m dried up like dead grass.
12 But you, LORD, rule forever! Your fame lasts from one generation to the next!
13 You will stand up—you’ll have compassion on Zion because it is time to have mercy on her—the time set for that has now come!
14 Your servants cherish Zion’s stones; they show mercy even to her dirt.
15 The nations will honor the LORD’s name; all the earth’s rulers will honor your glory
16 because the LORD will rebuild Zion; he will be seen there in his glory.
17 God will turn to the prayer of the impoverished; he won’t despise their prayers.
18 Let this be written down for the next generation so that people not yet created will praise the LORD:
19 The LORD looked down from his holy summit, surveyed the earth from heaven,
20 to hear the prisoners’ groans, to set free those condemned to death,
21 that the LORD’s name may be declared in Zion and his praise declared in Jerusalem,
22 when all people are gathered together—all kingdoms—to serve the LORD.
23 God broke my strength in midstride, cutting my days short.
24 I said, “My God, don’t take me away in the prime of life—your years go on from one generation to the next!
25 You laid the earth’s foundations long ago; the skies are your handiwork.
26 These things will pass away, but you will last. All of these things will wear out like clothing; you change them like clothes, and they pass on.
27 But you are the one! Your years never end!
28 Let your servants’ children live safe; let your servants’ descendants live secure in your presence.”
(NRSV)
Prayer can be an interesting exercise, especially in times of deep distress. We offer our prayers of distress coupled with doubt. We have our doubts about God hearing our prayers and, in the event those prayers are heard, will there be a response anywhere close to what we want. At times, we go so far as to wonder if God is there at all. We feel as if we are wasting our breath talking to one who does not exist; if God does exist, is there any connection between us and God? However, we are praying and that indicates a desire, longing and need for God in our lives.
There is evidence from prehistoric times to the present that people have felt that need for something larger than the individual as well as the collective sense of being and belonging. One of the ways the Abrahamic faiths express that need and longing is through prayer and singing to and about God and our relationships centered in God. The psalmists lift up prayers of despair and rejoicing as well as the needs and wants that fall in between those extremes.
Yes, we wonder if God hears and responds to our prayers. We wonder for all sorts of reasons and in all sorts of situations. Through it all there continue to be people who pray, who lift the people, places and events that weigh on their hearts to the power and presence of God. Sometimes it is all we can do. Sometimes our prayers embolden us, instruct us or energize us to act in concert with God for the meeting of the needs of those around us. My experience has been that prayer does not change the events around me, prayer changes me.
June 20, 2016
LCM
Proper 8
June 26, 2016
Psalm 102
1 LORD, hear my prayer! Let my cry reach you!
2 Don’t hide your face from me in my time of trouble! Listen to me! Answer me quickly as I cry out!
3 Because my days disappear like smoke, my bones are burned up as if in an oven;
4 my heart is smashed like dried-up grass. I even forget to eat my food
5 because of my intense groans. My bones are protruding from my skin.
6 I’m like some wild owl—like some screech owl in the desert.
7 I lie awake all night. I’m all alone like a bird on a roof.
8 All day long my enemies make fun of me; those who mock me curse using my name!
9 I’ve been eating ashes instead of bread. I’ve been mixing tears into my drinks
10 because of your anger and wrath, because you picked me up and threw me away.
11 My days are like a shadow soon gone. I’m dried up like dead grass.
12 But you, LORD, rule forever! Your fame lasts from one generation to the next!
13 You will stand up—you’ll have compassion on Zion because it is time to have mercy on her—the time set for that has now come!
14 Your servants cherish Zion’s stones; they show mercy even to her dirt.
15 The nations will honor the LORD’s name; all the earth’s rulers will honor your glory
16 because the LORD will rebuild Zion; he will be seen there in his glory.
17 God will turn to the prayer of the impoverished; he won’t despise their prayers.
18 Let this be written down for the next generation so that people not yet created will praise the LORD:
19 The LORD looked down from his holy summit, surveyed the earth from heaven,
20 to hear the prisoners’ groans, to set free those condemned to death,
21 that the LORD’s name may be declared in Zion and his praise declared in Jerusalem,
22 when all people are gathered together—all kingdoms—to serve the LORD.
23 God broke my strength in midstride, cutting my days short.
24 I said, “My God, don’t take me away in the prime of life—your years go on from one generation to the next!
25 You laid the earth’s foundations long ago; the skies are your handiwork.
26 These things will pass away, but you will last. All of these things will wear out like clothing; you change them like clothes, and they pass on.
27 But you are the one! Your years never end!
28 Let your servants’ children live safe; let your servants’ descendants live secure in your presence.”
(NRSV)
Prayer can be an interesting exercise, especially in times of deep distress. We offer our prayers of distress coupled with doubt. We have our doubts about God hearing our prayers and, in the event those prayers are heard, will there be a response anywhere close to what we want. At times, we go so far as to wonder if God is there at all. We feel as if we are wasting our breath talking to one who does not exist; if God does exist, is there any connection between us and God? However, we are praying and that indicates a desire, longing and need for God in our lives.
There is evidence from prehistoric times to the present that people have felt that need for something larger than the individual as well as the collective sense of being and belonging. One of the ways the Abrahamic faiths express that need and longing is through prayer and singing to and about God and our relationships centered in God. The psalmists lift up prayers of despair and rejoicing as well as the needs and wants that fall in between those extremes.
Yes, we wonder if God hears and responds to our prayers. We wonder for all sorts of reasons and in all sorts of situations. Through it all there continue to be people who pray, who lift the people, places and events that weigh on their hearts to the power and presence of God. Sometimes it is all we can do. Sometimes our prayers embolden us, instruct us or energize us to act in concert with God for the meeting of the needs of those around us. My experience has been that prayer does not change the events around me, prayer changes me.
June 20, 2016
LCM
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Psalm Meditation 835
Proper 7
June 19, 2016
Psalm 99
1 The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2 The LORD is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he!
4 Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Extol the LORD our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees, and the statutes that he gave them.
8 O LORD our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9 Extol the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the LORD our God is holy.
(NRSV)
Years ago I heard, ‘we are not punished for our sin so much as we are punished by our sin.’ When it is about someone else I wish justice were more swift and decisive than it is. When it comes to me and the folks I love and care for I am grateful for God’s patience about sin and evil. It can take forever for the rest of the world to find out who did what when something happens, however the person or group responsible knows immediately. They may revel and celebrate in the moment but the gravity of sin weighs on them as it does on us no matter what.
The wonderful thing about free will is that God does not force decisions and choices on us. The bad thing is that when we have choices we can, and do, make some stupid, dangerous and evil choices. Sometimes the evil is intentional, when we do our best to make someone else miserable. Sometimes the evil is inadvertent, when we mean to do the right thing and it goes very wrong. Sometimes the evil is an unintended consequence of an otherwise good choice. And sometimes we simply get it wrong with the best of intentions by mistaking our selfishness for the mind and will of God.
God loves justice. At the same time, God loves us even when our actions, inactions and reactions lead to injustice for ourselves or someone else. It is a good idea to keep ears and minds open to the will of God even when it is at the expense of something precious to us. The love of God is perplexingly patient with us and with others. That patience with us, in hopes that we will find a way toward justice by our own choosing, is a part of the holiness of God.
June 14, 2016
LCM
Proper 7
June 19, 2016
Psalm 99
1 The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
2 The LORD is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples.
3 Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he!
4 Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
5 Extol the LORD our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!
6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees, and the statutes that he gave them.
8 O LORD our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
9 Extol the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the LORD our God is holy.
(NRSV)
Years ago I heard, ‘we are not punished for our sin so much as we are punished by our sin.’ When it is about someone else I wish justice were more swift and decisive than it is. When it comes to me and the folks I love and care for I am grateful for God’s patience about sin and evil. It can take forever for the rest of the world to find out who did what when something happens, however the person or group responsible knows immediately. They may revel and celebrate in the moment but the gravity of sin weighs on them as it does on us no matter what.
The wonderful thing about free will is that God does not force decisions and choices on us. The bad thing is that when we have choices we can, and do, make some stupid, dangerous and evil choices. Sometimes the evil is intentional, when we do our best to make someone else miserable. Sometimes the evil is inadvertent, when we mean to do the right thing and it goes very wrong. Sometimes the evil is an unintended consequence of an otherwise good choice. And sometimes we simply get it wrong with the best of intentions by mistaking our selfishness for the mind and will of God.
God loves justice. At the same time, God loves us even when our actions, inactions and reactions lead to injustice for ourselves or someone else. It is a good idea to keep ears and minds open to the will of God even when it is at the expense of something precious to us. The love of God is perplexingly patient with us and with others. That patience with us, in hopes that we will find a way toward justice by our own choosing, is a part of the holiness of God.
June 14, 2016
LCM
Monday, June 6, 2016
Psalm Meditation 834
Proper 5
June 12, 2016
Psalm 52
1 Why do you boast, O mighty one, of mischief done against the godly? All day long
2 you are plotting destruction. Your tongue is like a sharp razor, you worker of treachery.
3 You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking the truth. Selah
4 You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.
5 But God will break you down forever; he will snatch and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
6 The righteous will see, and fear, and will laugh at the evildoer, saying,
7 “See the one who would not take refuge in God, but trusted in abundant riches, and sought refuge in wealth!”
8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.
9 I will thank you forever, because of what you have done. In the presence of the faithful I will proclaim your name, for it is good.
(NRSV)
The people who begin businesses usually do so to provide a service for the people around them. If they provide a service that a lot of people want they end up making a lot of money doing it. With good business sense or good advice the service grows beyond the first location to become a multiple branch provider. For the original owner operator the business is about service more than money. As that owner retires or gets bought out the vision slowly shifts from product and service to profit and loss.
The founder of the company is interested in making money, however the top priority is providing the service that is the heart of the business. At some point investors place making money as the top priority with the service as a secondary concern. What started as a service has become a product and the interest of the higher ups shifts from providing a welcome service to accumulating maximum profits for the shareholders. The product begins to suffer and people move on to the next thing as the profiteers squabble over the business.
These are the folks the psalmist reminds us not to be. If we ever get to the point at which our desire for wealth is stronger than our desire for God, it is time to reconsider our priorities. While the psalm mentions those for whom wealth is a priority, there are other concerns as well. Anyone whose top priority is not God has some reconsidering to do. Trusting in the steadfast love of God is harder than it looks until we form the habit. Once it becomes a habit we can give God thanks in all times and places and situations.
June 6, 2016
LCM
Proper 5
June 12, 2016
Psalm 52
1 Why do you boast, O mighty one, of mischief done against the godly? All day long
2 you are plotting destruction. Your tongue is like a sharp razor, you worker of treachery.
3 You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking the truth. Selah
4 You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.
5 But God will break you down forever; he will snatch and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
6 The righteous will see, and fear, and will laugh at the evildoer, saying,
7 “See the one who would not take refuge in God, but trusted in abundant riches, and sought refuge in wealth!”
8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.
9 I will thank you forever, because of what you have done. In the presence of the faithful I will proclaim your name, for it is good.
(NRSV)
The people who begin businesses usually do so to provide a service for the people around them. If they provide a service that a lot of people want they end up making a lot of money doing it. With good business sense or good advice the service grows beyond the first location to become a multiple branch provider. For the original owner operator the business is about service more than money. As that owner retires or gets bought out the vision slowly shifts from product and service to profit and loss.
The founder of the company is interested in making money, however the top priority is providing the service that is the heart of the business. At some point investors place making money as the top priority with the service as a secondary concern. What started as a service has become a product and the interest of the higher ups shifts from providing a welcome service to accumulating maximum profits for the shareholders. The product begins to suffer and people move on to the next thing as the profiteers squabble over the business.
These are the folks the psalmist reminds us not to be. If we ever get to the point at which our desire for wealth is stronger than our desire for God, it is time to reconsider our priorities. While the psalm mentions those for whom wealth is a priority, there are other concerns as well. Anyone whose top priority is not God has some reconsidering to do. Trusting in the steadfast love of God is harder than it looks until we form the habit. Once it becomes a habit we can give God thanks in all times and places and situations.
June 6, 2016
LCM
Monday, May 30, 2016
Psalm Meditation 833
Proper 5
June 5, 2016
Psalm 149
1 Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
2 Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
3 Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.
4 For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory.
5 Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their couches.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands,
7 to execute vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with fetters and their nobles with chains of iron,
9 to execute on them the judgment decreed. This is glory for all his faithful ones. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
Imagine your child, grandchild or your best friend sitting stone faced and still in your presence, afraid to move or speak or make any noise at all for fear of offending or even angering you. And now imagine your reaction to this behavior from your loved one. It is painful to know that there is some wall or wedge between you, even when you know what it is. If you know that your relative or friend has become afraid of you, especially when they are afraid because they have been told by someone they trust that you are scary and will fly off the handle for the smallest reason.
Now think of your behavior when you are aware that you are in the presence of God. In a time of worship or formal prayer time you feel yourself being judged and found wanting, and you know that it is God whose ire you feel. You know this because someone you trust let you know that God is not one to be trifled with, God does not appreciate your enthusiasm or your reckless abandon as you enter this sacred time and place. What if that person you trust is simply passing on the fear of judgment they received from one they trusted. I think we are so afraid of offending God in our worship that we end up sucking the fun out of it and placing the blame on God.
Look again at verse 4, “For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory.” God actually enjoys our company. God likes to see us enjoying ourselves and the people around us. Yes, there is a time for decorum, for our best behavior and sometimes that is during worship. There are other times in which it is important to let our joy out, to remind ourselves how enjoyable it is to be with the one who loves us deeper, higher and wider than anyone else loves us and beyond our ability to comprehend. Yes, I grew up with lots of people who told me that being with God is deathly serious. I am reminded every now and then that my whole life is spent in the presence of God. God is with me as I tell stories good and bad, God is with me when I go places that are safe and dangerous, and God is with me when I am aware and when I am not. And no matter what God loves me and you and all those other people we know and love and all those people who drive us to distraction.
May 30, 2016
LCM
Proper 5
June 5, 2016
Psalm 149
1 Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
2 Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
3 Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.
4 For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory.
5 Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their couches.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands,
7 to execute vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples,
8 to bind their kings with fetters and their nobles with chains of iron,
9 to execute on them the judgment decreed. This is glory for all his faithful ones. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)
Imagine your child, grandchild or your best friend sitting stone faced and still in your presence, afraid to move or speak or make any noise at all for fear of offending or even angering you. And now imagine your reaction to this behavior from your loved one. It is painful to know that there is some wall or wedge between you, even when you know what it is. If you know that your relative or friend has become afraid of you, especially when they are afraid because they have been told by someone they trust that you are scary and will fly off the handle for the smallest reason.
Now think of your behavior when you are aware that you are in the presence of God. In a time of worship or formal prayer time you feel yourself being judged and found wanting, and you know that it is God whose ire you feel. You know this because someone you trust let you know that God is not one to be trifled with, God does not appreciate your enthusiasm or your reckless abandon as you enter this sacred time and place. What if that person you trust is simply passing on the fear of judgment they received from one they trusted. I think we are so afraid of offending God in our worship that we end up sucking the fun out of it and placing the blame on God.
Look again at verse 4, “For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory.” God actually enjoys our company. God likes to see us enjoying ourselves and the people around us. Yes, there is a time for decorum, for our best behavior and sometimes that is during worship. There are other times in which it is important to let our joy out, to remind ourselves how enjoyable it is to be with the one who loves us deeper, higher and wider than anyone else loves us and beyond our ability to comprehend. Yes, I grew up with lots of people who told me that being with God is deathly serious. I am reminded every now and then that my whole life is spent in the presence of God. God is with me as I tell stories good and bad, God is with me when I go places that are safe and dangerous, and God is with me when I am aware and when I am not. And no matter what God loves me and you and all those other people we know and love and all those people who drive us to distraction.
May 30, 2016
LCM
Monday, May 23, 2016
Psalm Meditation 832
Proper 4
May 29, 2016
Psalm 2
1 Why do the nations conspire, and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and his anointed, saying,
3 “Let us burst their bonds asunder, and cast their cords from us.”
4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the LORD has them in derision.
5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying,
6 “I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.”
7 I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have begotten you.
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.
9 You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”
10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear, with trembling
12 kiss his feet, or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way; for his wrath is quickly kindled. Happy are all who take refuge in him.
(NRSV)
I suppose we would not hear of a nation whose collective consciousness said, ‘We are a small, frail nation with no hope of ever being anything but small and frail, we better sit quietly and hope no one notices us.’ We are more likely to believe, ‘We are the best on earth, a force to be reckoned with so don’t turn your back on us unless you are willing to face the consequences.’ According to at least one biblical scholar, the nation of Israel was small and inconsequential as far as military/political powers go. At the same time they were in a great position, geographically and strategically, to defend themselves against most of their foes most of the time.
At the same time, they were a people of great faith who trusted that the God of Abraham and Sarah was watching out for them. If they were defeated it was the fault of the people and not of God. YHWH would keep them safe from all enemies and adversaries as long as they toed the line of covenant faithfulness. Once a rule was broken God turned away from the people and left them to suffer for a time as punishment for their sin of covenant breaking.
As our concept of leadership moved from that of absolute leader with absolute power to a broader distribution of power and influence we saw God in a new light as well. While there are those who see God as an absolute ruler waiting for us to make mistakes so that we can be punished, there are others who see God as one who loves us no matter what. God continues to be saddened, disappointed and angry with us over our actions, however the overarching trait of God is to love us. In this view God is more likely to entice us into faithfulness than to punish our lapses. God claims us each as a child who is loved and cared for as a unique and precious individual.
May 23, 2016
LCM
Proper 4
May 29, 2016
Psalm 2
1 Why do the nations conspire, and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and his anointed, saying,
3 “Let us burst their bonds asunder, and cast their cords from us.”
4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the LORD has them in derision.
5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying,
6 “I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.”
7 I will tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have begotten you.
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.
9 You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”
10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the LORD with fear, with trembling
12 kiss his feet, or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way; for his wrath is quickly kindled. Happy are all who take refuge in him.
(NRSV)
I suppose we would not hear of a nation whose collective consciousness said, ‘We are a small, frail nation with no hope of ever being anything but small and frail, we better sit quietly and hope no one notices us.’ We are more likely to believe, ‘We are the best on earth, a force to be reckoned with so don’t turn your back on us unless you are willing to face the consequences.’ According to at least one biblical scholar, the nation of Israel was small and inconsequential as far as military/political powers go. At the same time they were in a great position, geographically and strategically, to defend themselves against most of their foes most of the time.
At the same time, they were a people of great faith who trusted that the God of Abraham and Sarah was watching out for them. If they were defeated it was the fault of the people and not of God. YHWH would keep them safe from all enemies and adversaries as long as they toed the line of covenant faithfulness. Once a rule was broken God turned away from the people and left them to suffer for a time as punishment for their sin of covenant breaking.
As our concept of leadership moved from that of absolute leader with absolute power to a broader distribution of power and influence we saw God in a new light as well. While there are those who see God as an absolute ruler waiting for us to make mistakes so that we can be punished, there are others who see God as one who loves us no matter what. God continues to be saddened, disappointed and angry with us over our actions, however the overarching trait of God is to love us. In this view God is more likely to entice us into faithfulness than to punish our lapses. God claims us each as a child who is loved and cared for as a unique and precious individual.
May 23, 2016
LCM
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