Psalm Meditation 788
Ninth Sunday of Ordinary Time
July 26, 2015

Psalm 68
1 Let God rise up, let his enemies be scattered; let those who hate him flee before him.
2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; as wax melts before the fire, let the wicked perish before God.
3 But let the righteous be joyful; let them exult before God; let them be jubilant with joy.
4 Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds—his name is the LORD—be exultant before him.
5 Father of orphans and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.
6 God gives the desolate a home to live in; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious live in a parched land.
7 O God, when you went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness, Selah
8 the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain at the presence of God, the God of Sinai, at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9 Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad; you restored your heritage when it languished;
10 your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.
11 The Lord gives the command; great is the company of those who bore the tidings:
12 “The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!” The women at home divide the spoil,
13 though they stay among the sheepfolds—the wings of a dove covered with silver, its pinions with green gold.
14 When the Almighty scattered kings there, snow fell on Zalmon.
15 O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan; O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan!
16 Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountain, at the mount that God desired for his abode, where the LORD will reside forever?
17 With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand, thousands upon thousands, the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place.
18 You ascended the high mount, leading captives in your train and receiving gifts from people, even from those who rebel against the LORD God’s abiding there.
19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. Selah
20 Our God is a God of salvation, and to GOD, the Lord, belongs escape from death.
21 But God will shatter the heads of his enemies, the hairy crown of those who walk in their guilty ways.
22 The Lord said, “I will bring them back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23 so that you may bathe your feet in blood, so that the tongues of your dogs may have their share from the foe.”
24 Your solemn processions are seen, O God, the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—
25 the singers in front, the musicians last, between them girls playing tambourines:
26 “Bless God in the great congregation, the LORD, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!”
27 There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead, the princes of Judah in a body, the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.
28 Summon your might, O God; show your strength, O God, as you have done for us before.
29 Because of your temple at Jerusalem kings bear gifts to you.
30 Rebuke the wild animals that live among the reeds, the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples. Trample under foot those who lust after tribute; scatter the peoples who delight in war.
31 Let bronze be brought from Egypt; let Ethiopia hasten to stretch out its hands to God.
32 Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth; sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33 O rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens; listen, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
34 Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel; and whose power is in the skies.
35 Awesome is God in his sanctuary, the God of Israel; he gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God!
(NRSV)

It seems that these days, especially in sporting events, we are quick to credit our victories to our talents and skills, over and above all those other folks who are now wallowing in the agony of defeat. We do our happy/victory dance in the sight of all, so that friend and foe alike can experience this victory of ours. If any of ‘those’ people protest our victory in any way they are sore losers who need to go away and lick their wounds in the privacy of their own locker room. Leave the victory celebration to the victors. On those occasions in which we do lose, we are quick to blame someone or something other than ourselves or our enemies for the loss. It can’t possibly be our fault and it certainly has nothing to do with the superiority of ‘those’ people.

The role of the psalmist is often the same as that of the prophet; to remind us that God is in the midst of us. For the psalmist, it was God who was with us in our victories and it was an absence of God in our defeats. While views of God’s presence and absence have changed, it is always a helpful reminder that God is in our midst. Knowing that God is with us in victory reminds us to have a sense of humility in the presence of God. Knowing that God is with us in defeat reminds us we are not alone in the worst of times. And these types of victories and defeats are not final.

It is good to celebrate victories as celebrations of skills in the face of adversity. It is good to learn from our defeats and even to celebrate how much we were able to do in some cases. It is good to keep a humble perspective in either victory or defeat. God is not as concerned about the outcome of our sporting events as what kind of relationships we form in and around the events with our supporters and our opponents. Are we ‘in your face’ winners and pouty name calling losers or are we humble, gracious and aware of God’s presence in victory and defeat.

July 20, 2015
LCM