Psalm Meditation 1225 ¶Second Sunday of Advent ¶December 10, 2023 ¶Psalm 97 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+97&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶There are folks who long for the day of YHWH, knowing that on that day all the people who have ever annoyed them for any reason will suddenly cease to be. The judgement of God will come and destroy all who have stood against God, and we will finally be free of those evil doers. It will be a glorious day for us when we are finally free of all those who have harassed and tempted us throughout our lives. We will be able to relax and enjoy the presence of God in the fullness of glory. ¶Except that, each of us has had a time in which our faithfulness has been questionable, and we have made ourselves as liable to judgment as anyone else. Through our lives we have made someone or something the top priority in our lives, turning it into an idol. We have made ourselves guilty of the very thing for which we have wished God’s judgment on others. Even though we can justify our actions, we are still guilty. If the day of YHWH comes as we have hoped, we will be swept away in the same judgment we have wished on others. ¶The good thing is that God is not as vindictive as we can be. Though we long for fire, flood, and famine for all of ‘those’ people, God is loving and patient with them and with us. The love of God keeps calling us into a relationship, not only with God, with all people everywhere. God loves the people who have hurt us, who hate us, who ignore us because we mean so little to them. God loves us even though we have hurt people, hate people, and ignore people either purposely or carelessly. God loves us, simple as that. ¶December 6, 2023 ¶LCM