Psalm Meditation 1088 Fourth Sunday of Easter April 25, 2021 Psalm 143 1 Hear my prayer, O Lord; give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness; answer me in your righteousness. 2 Do not enter into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you. 3 For the enemy has pursued me, crushing my life to the ground, making me sit in darkness like those long dead. 4 Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled. 5 I remember the days of old, I think about all your deeds, I meditate on the works of your hands. 6 I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Selah 7 Answer me quickly, O Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me, or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit. 8 Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning, for in you I put my trust. Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. 9 Save me, O Lord, from my enemies; I have fled to you for refuge. 10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good spirit lead me on a level path. 11 For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life. In your righteousness bring me out of trouble. 12 In your steadfast love cut off my enemies, and destroy all my adversaries, for I am your servant. (NRSV) Each of us has a few people whose opinions matter to us. No matter what anyone else has to say, one of those trusted voices will be the deciding vote in our opinion of our work. This is the person who brings light into a room with them as far as we are concerned. It is important to know who these folks are in our lives, so we know where to turn our attention when we need an outside opinion. The psalmist turns to God when the need for help and support arises. It is in the presence of God that the psalmist finds refuge, fresh knowledge, steadfast and unconditional love, and wisdom in the face of trials and troubles. Because of turning to God the psalmist can make in verse 12, what I read as a manipulative, ‘If you loved me, you would destroy all the people who are mean to me.’ Though there is no mention of a community, the psalmist would not have written without a community in mind. A lively, diverse community gives us a richness of voices that lead by a variety of paths into the presence of God. As part of a community we can say with the psalmist, “Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.” April 19, 2021 LCM