Psalm Meditation 795
Sixteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
September 13, 2015

Psalm 132
1 O LORD, remember in David’s favor all the hardships he endured;
2 how he swore to the LORD and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,
3 “I will not enter my house or get into my bed;
4 I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids,
5 until I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
6 We heard of it in Ephrathah; we found it in the fields of Jaar.
7 “Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool.”
8 Rise up, O LORD, and go to your resting place, you and the ark of your might.
9 Let your priests be clothed with righteousness, and let your faithful shout for joy.
10 For your servant David’s sake do not turn away the face of your anointed one.
11 The LORD swore to David a sure oath from which he will not turn back: “One of the sons of your body I will set on your throne.
12 If your sons keep my covenant and my decrees that I shall teach them,
their sons also, forevermore, shall sit on your throne.”
13 For the LORD has chosen Zion; he has desired it for his habitation:
14 “This is my resting place forever; here I will reside, for I have desired it.
15 I will abundantly bless its provisions; I will satisfy its poor with bread.
16 Its priests I will clothe with salvation, and its faithful will shout for joy.
17 There I will cause a horn to sprout up for David; I have prepared a lamp for my anointed one.
18 His enemies I will clothe with disgrace, but on him, his crown will gleam.”
(NRSV)

While this psalm may have been used in a coronation it reminds us that each of us has to have a relationship with God that is our own. Any previous generations of faithful folks have taught us and given us an example of what it means to follow God, however it is up to each of us to take that example and claim our own relationship with God. Whether we are the richest of rulers or the poorest of the poor each of us forms our relationship with God in a unique way.

The friends our parents and grandparents have do not automatically become our friends as well. If we choose, we develop our own relationship with these folks. It will be different from the ones our parents have with them for all sorts of reasons. Over the course of time it may become a deep and meaningful relationship based on our own shared history that includes our mutual and very different relationships with the people who introduced us. This includes our relationship with God. It may have been our parents who introduced us to God, however it is up to each of us to develop our that relationship with God on our own.

While the psalm points out a family history of a relationship with God, the psalmist also reminds us, “If your sons keep my covenant and my decrees that I shall teach them, their sons also, forevermore, shall sit on your throne.” The relationship with God, the dynasty of the royal house is based on the historic relationship with David as well as the ongoing relationship with God fostered by the individual who is next in line for the throne. While our parents and grandparents may have had deeply fulfilling relationships with God, we do not automatically have that same kind of relationship. It is up to each of us to build our relationship with God.

September 7, 2015
LCM