Showing posts with label Psalm 4. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Psalm 4. Show all posts
Monday, January 27, 2025
Psalm Meditation 1285
¶Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
¶February 2, 2025
¶Psalm 4
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%204&version=NRSVUE
(NRSVUE)
¶A friend will find us when we are in distress and do all in their power to bring us out of it, using all of their energy and resources to make everything right again. A best friend will come and sit with us, saying nothing until we break the silence. Even then, they may not speak, simply continue to sit and listen. They may go in and out fixing and bringing us something to eat and drink, without insisting that we eat or drink it. They will give us the room we need to consider next steps without judgment.
¶The psalmist reminds us that God is not one to come in riding a white horse, wearing silver armor, to fix whatever ails us at the moment. Even if the solution seems obvious to an outsider, God is in control in a way that does not demand that we follow the most obvious solution, since we are the ones who will live with the consequences of our choice for good and ill. One of my seminary professors asked a group of us,” As parents, how do know you have lost control of your children.? Since none of us answered, he gave us the answer, “When you have to reach out and physically restrain your child. God does not lose control.”
¶The psalm goes on to instruct us to give our situation some time. Knowing that we are not alone, with God sitting with us, we can take some time to collect ourselves, consider our options, and make our choices. We might even be able to lie down and rest in the safety of God’s overarching presence, steadfast love, and peace.
¶January 27, 2025
¶LCM
Tuesday, May 17, 2022
Psalm Meditation 1144
¶Sixth Sunday of Easter
¶May 22, 2022
¶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)
¶There is something good and fun about eating and drinking to excess. It seems such a good idea at the time, to take in all the goodness that a particular celebration has to offer. As we fall deeper and deeper into the hole of excess, the consequences seem to matter less and less. It is all just fun and games for the time being. It is only after the fact, when the consequences of our actions rear their ugly head, that we realize that the fun of food and drink does not last.
¶The psalmist prefers the gladness that comes from being in a relationship with God. It is difficult, to be sure, however it does not weigh us down the way eating and drinking do. Faithfulness in relation to God leads to a gladness that is more about being fulfilled than merely being filled. Being in the presence of God gives us a sense of wholeness that a life of excess can only pretend to give.
¶Being aware of the presence of God in and around us gives us a sense of peace that nothing else can give. To know that we are heard and held when nothing seems to be going our way is a great source of comfort and peace. The fleeting nature of the gladness brought about by excess food and drink cannot compare to a relationship with God. “I will both lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me lie down in safety.”
¶May 17, 2022
¶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, November 11, 2013
Psalm Meditation 700
Twenty sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
November 17, 2013
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)
The psalmist believes that our actions have a direct effect on the way God treats us. If we turn away from proper practice of our faith God turns away from us and leaves us to the consequences of our sin. As long as we do the right thing, go through the proper rituals and have some personal investment in the process God will be good to us. As soon as we stop doing what God has asked of us we are left alone.
I too believe that our actions have an effect on the presence of God in our lives but in a different way. As we fail to live out of love, forgiveness and generosity we wander away from the way that leads to the presence of God. It is not that we are abandoned so much as we lose the ability or the willingness to see and experience the presence of God in our lives. Once we stop practicing the presence of God we begin to lose the ability to see God in all times and spaces.
Both viewpoints acknowledge that we are separated from God as a consequence of our actions. In one view God walks away from us, in the other we walk away from God. We have some responsibility either way, the difference is in the view of God. For the psalmist, God can be provoked into moving away from us. In the other view, we move away from God and are left to pay the consequences. God is always with us, always available to us, it is we who choose to ignore that God is with us. Even then, God seeks us out, invites us, calls us into a relationship that seeks out God’s abiding presence among us.
November 11, 2013
Twenty sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
November 17, 2013
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)
The psalmist believes that our actions have a direct effect on the way God treats us. If we turn away from proper practice of our faith God turns away from us and leaves us to the consequences of our sin. As long as we do the right thing, go through the proper rituals and have some personal investment in the process God will be good to us. As soon as we stop doing what God has asked of us we are left alone.
I too believe that our actions have an effect on the presence of God in our lives but in a different way. As we fail to live out of love, forgiveness and generosity we wander away from the way that leads to the presence of God. It is not that we are abandoned so much as we lose the ability or the willingness to see and experience the presence of God in our lives. Once we stop practicing the presence of God we begin to lose the ability to see God in all times and spaces.
Both viewpoints acknowledge that we are separated from God as a consequence of our actions. In one view God walks away from us, in the other we walk away from God. We have some responsibility either way, the difference is in the view of God. For the psalmist, God can be provoked into moving away from us. In the other view, we move away from God and are left to pay the consequences. God is always with us, always available to us, it is we who choose to ignore that God is with us. Even then, God seeks us out, invites us, calls us into a relationship that seeks out God’s abiding presence among us.
November 11, 2013
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