Psalm Meditation 1234 ¶Transfiguration Sunday ¶February 11, 2024 ¶Psalm 88 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+88&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶This is one of my favorite psalms because it serves as a reminder that life in God is not all sweetness and light. This is not a ‘praise the Lord, anyway’ kind of psalm, this is a ‘damn it God, why are you being so mean to me?’ psalm. All the things that are going poorly for the psalmist are being laid at the feet of God, who must be at fault for all these things. Granted it is in a time in which all things, good and bad are attributed to the activity of God in our lives as rewards and punishments for our action and inaction in the world. ¶That is not the world in which I want to live. I am of the mind that God loves us, and abides with us in every time and place. As things go well, God is right there cheering on our success. As things go wonky, God is there to offer us a supportive presence in the midst of whatever wonkiness we might find ourselves. The question isn’t, ‘What did I do to deserve this from God?’ the question is, ‘Where is God in the midst of this and what comfort is God already offering to help me cope?’ ¶I like the psalm because it reminds us that when bad things happen, we can still turn to God for comfort, assurance, and maybe even deliverance. The advice I heard for how to use this psalm when things are too dark to navigate alone, it so go somewhere safe and read this with as much passion and energy as you can muster. Yes, it will be yelling at God, who is secure enough to handle the anger involved in offering this psalm to God. To know that God loves us, even when we are angry, is a great gift indeed. ¶February 5, 2024 ¶LCM