Psalm Meditation 708
First Sunday After Epiphany
January 12, 2014

Psalm 46
46
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
5 God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns.
6 The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
8 Come, behold the works of the LORD; see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.
10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
11 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
(NRSV)

At some point we each make a New Year’s resolution or two. And the next year we make the same resolution with the resolve that we will do it better and longer than we did the year before. If only we are tougher with ourselves and pushed longer and harder, we will actually accomplish what we set out to do. I imagine there are folks who can actually live out their resolutions, the rest of us are doomed to years of frustration until we give up making resolutions altogether. Many of us do that in our religious life as well. If only we try harder we can keep from sinning as we have in the past. And it never works.

It isn’t until we realize that God is our refuge and strength that we are able to make progress and move forward. Like any other accountability partner it is not God who makes the changes or does the work for us. We still have to do the work ourselves. Knowing that God is with us, offering us a safe environment for change and the strength to do, makes a lot of difference. From the vantage point of the presence of God many of the challenges that lie before us seem less intimidating. The presence of God is not magic, we still have to make the effort to grow and change. The presence of God is loving and supporting, calling us to move forward rather than to fall back into previous practices and habits.

Sometimes all we need to do is be still and know that God is with us, that God chooses to be with us. Knowing that someone loves us as we are, encourages us to grow in good and helpful ways makes a great deal of difference in how we live our lives. When all around us is unsettled we look to God who continues to stand firm in the face of all that comes our way. Take comfort in God and in the people who dwell in the presence of God.

January 6, 2014