Psalm Meditation 823
Easter
March 27, 2016

Psalm 124
1 If it had not been the LORD who was on our side —let Israel now say—
2 if it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when our enemies attacked us,
3 then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their anger was kindled against us;
4 then the flood would have swept us away, the torrent would have gone over us;
5 then over us would have gone the raging waters.
6 Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
(NRSV)

This enemy of Israel is compared to the power of the sea; floods, torrents and raging waters. The psalmist describes Israel as a bird trapped in a snare. There is no contest between a trapped bird and a raging sea, except when the presence of God is factored in. When God is present the trap is broken open and Israel is able to escape the sure destruction awaiting them. The victory is not in defeating the enemy, it is in escaping the battle and surviving. Survival is something for which to give God thanks.

For most of us, our daily battles are not against armies in full combat gear marching against us. Our battles tend to be with our fears and doubts that rise up against us from the inside. These fears know our weaknesses and look for ways to exploit them in ways that make us feel weaker and less prepared than we need to given our skills and abilities. The fears trap us and threaten to overwhelm us like the trapped bird of the psalm.

The presence of God in our lives frees us from the traps set by fear and doubt. We may not be able to rise to full scope of our skills and abilities but we can escape the doubts and fears in a way that allows us to see ourselves as survivors in the face of all that might come our way. God is with us to use our doubts and fears to push us forward. God is with us to quiet our doubts and fears to allow us to move forward. God is with us despite our doubts and fears to move us forward. God is with us to allow us to escape our doubts and fears. “Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”

March 21, 2016
LCM