Psalm Meditation 954
Proper 21
September 30, 2018

Psalm 92
1 It is good to give thanks to the LORD , to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night,
3 to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre.
4 For you, O LORD , have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.
5 How great are your works, O LORD! Your thoughts are very deep!
6 The dullard cannot know, the stupid cannot understand this:
7 though the wicked sprout like grass and all evildoers flourish, they are doomed to destruction forever,
8 but you, O LORD, are on high forever.
9 For your enemies, O LORD, for your enemies shall perish; all evildoers shall be scattered.
10 But you have exalted my horn like that of the wild ox; you have poured over me fresh oil.
11 My eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies; my ears have heard the doom of my evil assailants.
12 The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God.
14 In old age they still produce fruit; they are always green and full of sap,
15 showing that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
(NRSV)

Sometimes it is good to spend some time thanking God, to go through the list of good things that have happened because the LORD is present among us. The psalmist has a list of things that God has done and is doing, from loving us to delivering us from the people and circumstances that have held us down. The psalmist includes a jab at those who can’t or won’t see that God is always at work doing great things with and for us.

We can each make our own list of good things that God causes and permits to go on in and around us. There is an accomplishment that to the untrained eye we have done by ourselves. We are able to thank God for giving us the strength, stamina, motivation, and willingness to complete. There is a conflict that has loomed before us that we have faced and brought to resolution by the help, grace, and presence of God. We have seen God at work around us in a way that lifts our spirits and makes us grateful. Our list can be small or large, and we give thanks to God.

Some have the eloquence and ability to rival the words and phrases of the psalmist, while others make a list of bullet points for which they are thankful. God knows our gifts. The important part is the list, the ability to see God at work in the ordinary as well as the extra-ordinary. “For you, O LORD , have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.”

September 24, 2018
LCM