Psalm Meditation 1164 ¶Proper 23 ¶October 9, 2022 ¶Psalm 30 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+30&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶Much of what happens to us is based on our actions, reactions, and attitudes. Some folks can jump off of buildings, land properly, and run off to the next obstacle. The rest of us will land badly, break at least one bone, and never stand as we did before. It has to do with what we take into the experience with us. If we have worked our way up to the otherwise impossible feat we have a much better chance of pulling it off successfully than if we make the jump haphazardly, tense up instead of relax, and miss the mark in some dangerous foolhardy way. ¶The psalmist is grateful that God has “drawn me up and did not let my foes rejoice over me.” Did God act as a special favor to the psalmist, or did the psalmist’s faithfulness and regular faith practice play a part in the help God was able to give? There was an existing relationship between the psalmist and God that allowed God’s activity to be anticipated and experienced. We can’t expect God to act in a certain way, however we can anticipate that God will be with us in a way that will be calming and helpful. ¶I believe that God is not in the habit of stepping in to stir the pot in order to save us from our own foolishness. God is with us and available to us. If we have formed a relationship with God, we will be more likely to notice where and when God is active in and around us. Knowing that God is with us gives us the courage to do the right thing, even if will be painful for us. “Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me! O LORD, be my helper!” ¶October 4, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1163 ¶Proper 22 ¶October 2, 2022 ¶Psalm 23 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+23&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶In high school I helped in a daycare center during my long lunch break. There was a brother and sister who would not lie still for nap time. I volunteered to help them get to sleep. I laid on the floor had one of the siblings lie on either side of me with a head on my bicep. I put a hand on each chest and held them still until they wearied themselves off to sleep. It rarely took more than a couple of minutes. I slowly moved one arm so the child’s head did not bump on the hard floor and then lifted the other head gently while I moved my arm. I could then go back to school with plenty of time before my next class. ¶As adults we rarely have to be made to take naps. As children we resist naps for reasons available only to children. So when the psalmist says, “He makes me lie down in green pastures,” I think of the reluctance children have to nap as I read that line of the psalm. I know other versions translate the line differently, however we have ‘makes’ in this case. God not only provides us a place, God makes that place safe through watching care. Knowing that God is with us allows us to rest peacefully and find restoration in the pastures to which God leads us. ¶No matter what, we are in the presence of God. God does not keep us from the dark valleys or the presence of evil. God does give us comfort as we face the less than perfect, less than desirable parts of our lives. Each of us will come to the end of life at some point, even then we are not abandoned by God. We continue to enjoy God’s providence and to live in God’s presence. “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long.” ¶September 26, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1162 ¶Proper 21 ¶September 25, 2022 ¶Psalm 16 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+16&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶There are times in our lives in which we wonder why we have to go through some of the things we endure. There are events that bring us to question why we have faith in God if this is what happens to us when we do. We feel beat down, abandoned, and wondering how we are hanging on to life and sanity through all this. We are both jealous of and enraged by all those whose lives seem to run smoothly all the time. What makes them so special that they never have to suffer as we currently are? ¶The psalmist doesn’t say that life will be perfect when we cast our lot with God. The statement the psalmist makes to God is, “I have no good apart from you.” We all suffer; it seems to be wrapped up in what it means to be alive. People and things around us are lost to us in a variety of ways and we are left to carry on without them. It is hard to the point of being unbearable. Imagine how much worse it would be without the presence of God, and the people of God surrounding us with love, concern, and help. ¶As the times and events of our lives go sour for us, we do well to remember that God is with us no matter what. God is as present with us in the times of suffering as in the good times. While these times are painful, we can rest assured that God is with us, offering steadfast love and comfort to us. While we may not, should not, rejoice in every situation, we know that God’s loving presence will bring us to a time in which we are able to rejoice. ¶September 22, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1161 ¶Proper 20 ¶September 18, 2022 ¶Psalm 45 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+45&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶Of course the king deserves these accolades and compliments, because he is the king. There may be a touch of extravagant flattery, however for the most part the king deserves to hear all of these good things about himself and his bride. Leaders of all ages deserve the acclaim that the people offer, especially if that leader is somehow one of us. Certainly God smiles on leaders who serve God by ruling the people fairly. ¶If these same kinds of compliments are pointed toward us we are quick to deflect them, discount them, and ignore them. Despite our unwillingness to accept those compliments, in the eyes of God we are each special and have our own set of skills and gifts that set us apart from the those around us. Even our uniqueness is not what causes God to love us. God loves us because it is the nature of God to love each of us with the same steadfast love that every other person receives. ¶We deserve the compliments sincerely given to us, because we are beloved children of God. Most of us are not celebrities, known by many beyond our ability to know in return. That does not make us any less special in the eyes of God. The lowliest to the loftiest is known and loved by God as an individual of sacred worth. ¶September 13, 2022 ¶LCM

Psalm Meditation 1160 ¶Proper 19 ¶September 11, 2022 ¶Psalm 38 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm+38&version=NRSVUE (NRSV) ¶To be disciplined, as in punished, by someone we love and respect is worse than being punished by someone whose opinion of us does not matter as much. Our first inclination is to believe that the one punishing us has lost respect for us and does not like or love us as much as we have come to expect. The psalmist is concerned that God is more intent on punishment than on the teaching aspect of discipline, and that thought is more damaging than the punishment itself. ¶If God’s love for us has lessened in any way because of our actions, we have reason to be troubled because of our sin. Because we tend to see God as human, only bigger, we read our own thoughts and experiences into our view of God. If we sometimes let our anger get the better of us as we are punishing someone, how much more will God do that with us when we have done something that deserves discipline and punishment? ¶God is not like us only bigger. God is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Even when God is angry and wrathful there is a measured response to our action and inaction. God’s intent is to teach us, and to love us in every form of discipline, including punishment. When we realize that, we willingly wait for God, to protect us from those who lash out at us in anger, to protect others when we lash out at them, and to bring us each to the wholeness of salvation. ¶September 5, 2022 ¶LCM

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