Psalm Meditation 1094 Second Sunday of Ordinary Time June 6, 2021 Psalm 144 1 Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle; 2 my rock and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues the peoples under me. 3 O Lord, what are human beings that you regard them, or mortals that you think of them? 4 They are like a breath; their days are like a passing shadow. 5 Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down; touch the mountains so that they smoke. 6 Make the lightning flash and scatter them; send out your arrows and rout them. 7 Stretch out your hand from on high; set me free and rescue me from the mighty waters, from the hand of aliens, 8 whose mouths speak lies, and whose right hands are false. 9 I will sing a new song to you, O God; upon a ten-stringed harp I will play to you, 10 the one who gives victory to kings, who rescues his servant David. 11 Rescue me from the cruel sword, and deliver me from the hand of aliens, whose mouths speak lies, and whose right hands are false. 12 May our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, our daughters like corner pillars, cut for the building of a palace. 13 May our barns be filled, with produce of every kind; may our sheep increase by thousands, by tens of thousands in our fields, 14 and may our cattle be heavy with young. May there be no breach in the walls, no exile, and no cry of distress in our streets. 15 Happy are the people to whom such blessings fall; happy are the people whose God is the Lord. (NRSV) Most of us don’t face our enemies in armed combat in physical form since most of our enemies are the doubts and concerns that interfere with our ability to function on a daily basis. We may have gobs of skills and talents, or just enough to get by. At the same time we are assailed by doubts that keep us from doing the work of which we are capable. The doubts likely come from within us, even if we received them from a figure we loved and trusted at some point in our lives. Having internalized the doubts, we allow our doubts to overpower our awareness of our skills. The psalmist asks God for relief from the enemies who are in full attack mode against our author. Whether physical, spiritual, or psychological, the enemies aim is to destroy us in some form or another. No matter how the destruction comes, it is aided by lies and offers of help that will turn to dust in our hands. God is the ones who speaks the truth and whose offered hand is firm and supportive in the face of any calamity. God serves as giver of our skills and talents as well as our cheerleader to use our gifts to the best of our ability. When we feel as if we are drowning in doubt and questions, God is with us to give us what we need to face our doubts. It could be as simple as letting us walk away to regroup for a moment or the willingness to trust ourselves and give our all to the project, calamity, or trial at hand. “Happy are the people to whom such blessings fall; happy are the people whose God is the Lord.” May 31, 2021 LCM