Psalm Meditation 513
Third Sunday of Easter
April 18, 2010

Psalm 147
1 Praise the LORD! How good it is to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The LORD lifts up the downtrodden; he casts the wicked to the ground.
7 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.
8 He covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He gives to the animals their food, and to the young ravens when they cry.
10 His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
11 but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.
12 Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.
14 He grants peace within your borders; he fills you with the finest of wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down hail like crumbs-- who can stand before his cold?
18 He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances. Praise the LORD!
(NRSV)

I was taught several years ago that we give praise for who God is and we give thanks for what God does. While that is a helpful distinction this psalm seems to remind us that it is very difficult to separate the two. God is what God does and God does what God is. We know who God is by what God does among us, for us, in spite of us. Whether we give God thanks, praise or a combination of the two we are aware of God’s presence in our lives and that is far better than making narrow distinctions about presence or action.

God takes pleasure in us. It is not about whether we do things right or do right things it is about whether we want to be in the presence of God as wholeheartedly as God wants to be with us. Every now and then I wonder if folks who have known celebrities since before they were famous are as awestruck by their famous friends as are the rest of us. I am convinced that God wants to be treated as one we have known forever rather than as one around whom we need to mind our manners. Relax and enjoy God’s company rather than being too intent on proper form. God takes pleasure in us because of who we really are rather than who we pretend to be in the presence of others.

Does God do great things for us only after we acknowledge the presence of God in our lives or do we notice what God has been doing for us and among us once we acknowledge God in our lives? I believe that God is always at work in our lives. God does not love us because of who we are so much as because of who God is. We have no choice or say in whether or not God loves us; God loves us no matter what. We choose whether or not we love God and what it means to us to do that.

Give God thanks and praise. If the categories get confusing and we lose track of whether we do well to thank God or praise God for something feel free to enjoy the company of God as one who is deeply loved by God.

© April 12, 2010