Psalm Meditation 1159 ¶Proper 18 ¶September 4, 2022 ¶Psalm 31 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+31&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶One of my brothers-in-law once told me that several people on his team would come into his office and plop into a chair, obviously ready to vent about something. Before they got too wound up he would ask them, “Do you want me to fix this, or do you want me to hear it?” Once he had that settled, he could listen with the proper mindset. There are times we go to someone else so that we can hear ourselves say it out loud, knowing that there is a sympathetic ear focused on us. Other times we want advice and counsel to face a challenge that seems beyond us. ¶The psalmist turns to God for a listening ear as well as for protection from the slings and arrows that seem to be on every side. ‘If only there were someone who would listen to my fears and offer me comfort and protection from all that is going on around me.’ The psalmist is aware that God has been that listening ear as well as a fortress and refuge for many in the sweep of salvation history. Trusting in God to act in our own lives moves us closer to the refuge God offers to us. ¶God is not a helicopter parent, hovering over us to protect us from the slightest insult or injury. God is more like a free range parent, allowing to go where we will and do what we will with a few boundaries. God is also present and available to us at any time and place. As we turn to God for refuge we are given comfort as well as encouragement to go back into the world as soon as, maybe even a little before, we are ready to face the world and God’s abundant goodness in it. ¶August 29, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1158 ¶Proper 17 ¶August 28, 2022 ¶Psalm 24 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+24&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶Years ago, a friend and I hiked up a mountain in Colorado. It was not steep enough for us to need ropes, gear, or skill. What I remember about that climb is how inaccessible the peak of the mountain was to us. Every time we reached what we thought was the peak, there was more mountain above us. At some point we decided that anything higher was probably a new mountain and contented ourselves with the height we had achieved. At that point I do not recall having either clean hands or a pure heart. I recall being ready to rest. ¶I believe the hill of the LORD is much the same. We work and climb and rest as we are able at the time. Every time we reach what appeared to be the top just a moment ago is simply a pointy spot on the side of the hill. I don’t think we get to the point where we can truthfully say that we have reached the top, that we have done all that God requires of us so that we can sit down and rest. There is always another bit of hill or mountain ahead of us. Fortunately for us, there are points along the climb at which God offers us a gift that makes the journey so far worth the effort. ¶The gifts from God aren’t for having accomplished something nearly as much as they are for showing up and being attentive enough to see that a gift is headed our way. Those who are in it for the gifts as well as those who don’t believe that there are gifts, let alone a God to give them are likely going to miss out on anything that God gives. Those who receive God’s gifts have not been rooting around to dig up buried treasure, or climbing as if they can reach the peak on their own. They are putting in their best effort while be open to and aware of the presence, and presents, of God. ¶August 22, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1157 ¶Proper 16 ¶August 21, 2022 ¶Psalm 17 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+17&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶Word and phrase meanings and origins have been a fascination of mine for most of my life, so, “Guard me as the apple of the eye“ caught my attention. Without going too far down a rabbit hole, I found two sources. For Shakespeare the apple of the eye was the pupil. They had no other name for it, it is sort of apple shaped, so that seemed a fitting name for it. In Hebrew the phrase translates as, ‘the little person of the eye,’ the reflection one sees as someone looks at you. To be the apple of one’s eye is to be the sole focus of the one who sees you. ¶To be the apple of the eye of God is really something. Since God is so far beyond us, we have no comprehension of how it happens, however God has a way of seeing each of us as if and because we are the most important person to God in every moment. God is not looking at us to judge us, to find fault and error in any part of our lives. God is looking at us with a love that is deeper and more intense than any love we can offer to God or any one else. ¶When the psalmist asks to be guarded as the apple of God’s eye, it is already happening. The only thing left is for the psalmist to realize that God is already offering all the love and attention the psalmist could possibly use. And the rest of the psalm will also come to pass but not because of God. These adversaries will continue to pursue their worldly aims while ignoring the presence of God. God continues to offer the love and attention to everyone, even to those who choose to ignore it. ¶August 16, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1156 ¶Proper 15 ¶August 14, 2022 ¶Psalm 11 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+11&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶Some of us will have heard, and said, “People don’t neighbor the way they used to.” And while there is a kernel of truth, there is just as much that is not true. Many who say this are thinking back to a time in which the folks who lived around us were just like us. We could neighbor with them because we had so many characteristics and behaviors in common. So, many of us do not neighbor with the folks who live near us because the neighborhood has become much more diverse than it was originally. ¶We continue to neighbor with ‘our kind’ of people. We have to travel a ways to get to our ‘neighbors,’ to enjoy the company of people with whom we have something in common. The psalmist tells us that, “...the LORD is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face.” It serves as a reminder that God enjoys the company of people who enjoy the company of God. Do we get to brag about being in God’s in-crowd? Not really. Folks who brag about anything are not usually in as ‘brag-able’ a place as they claim. ¶While we may be among those who enjoy the company of God, it is important to remember that God invites and welcomes all who will come. We are not special due to any effort on our part nearly as much as we are made special by the steadfast, abiding love of God. So, rather than feel good about our special place in the presence of God, we do well to live as if God has a place for each person. When we live as neighbors of God, we can more readily invite folks into God’s presence. ¶August 8, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1155 ¶Proper 14 ¶August 7, 2022 ¶Psalm 39 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+39&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶Many of us have a love/hate relationship with God. We know that God loves us, cares for us, and wants what is best for us. The difficulty lies in the knowledge that what is best for us is not always pleasant. Things as simple as naps and baths were once battle grounds for us, thinking we were too old for such trivialities as rest and cleanliness. How many of us who fought those naps and baths with tears and tantrums look forward to both a bath/shower, and a nap these days? What does God ask us to do or endure that seems terrible at the time, yet afterward seems to have turned out well? ¶The psalmist wants to be delivered from the bonds of sin without any suffering, as if that is possible. Many of our sinful habits carry a hefty price for us to be free of them. Some exact a physical price, some a spiritual cost, and others drain us physically as well as spiritually. A statement that has been helpful to me through the years is, “Every action has a cost and a promise.” We have to weigh which is greater as we make our choice. Sometimes we choose the one with the high cost in hopes that there will be a worthy promise at the end. It is painful when we discover we have made the wrong choice. ¶I imagine that the gaze of God is a parental look, the one that stops us in our tracks and makes us want to evaluate every life choice we have made up to this moment. Once caught in the gaze, we know we will never smile or laugh again for as long as we live. It is only as our parent looks away that we see any hope for the future. Having endured that gaze to its end we see that it has love and concern as a part of it. At our best, the angry gaze is not the final expression. In the case of God, anger is certainly not the final word. The love, care and concern that God has for us holds us far longer than any anger on God’s part. ¶August 2, 2022 ¶LCM