Psalm Meditation 1256 ¶Proper 10 ¶July 14, 2024 ¶Psalm 134 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+134&version=NRSVUE (NRSVUE) ¶“It is really important to thank God so that God will do me a favor in return.” Whether we say it that way or not, we do have a tendency to believe that if we do the right things, God will do right by us. When that happens we can tell all of our friends how good God is to us, because we are some of the good guys. If you want good things, you have to, at least, go through the motions to get God to bless you just like God blesses us on a regular basis. “I am pretty sure that this is what the psalm means, bless God and you will be blessed in return.” ¶One of my long ago congregation members called this, ‘stuff and nonsense.’ We do not get good things because of anything that we do for good or ill. We get good things because God loves us more than anyone can imagine. God is not waiting for us to do good things so that we can earn our reward, or waiting for us to mess up so that we can get the punishment we deserve. God loves us, and is ever looking for ways to give us what we need. With God it is never about earning or deserving, it is always about receiving the grace, love, and mercy that God wants to give to us. ¶We bless God out of a sense of gratitude for all God is and does in and around us. It is our small way of acknowledging the present and active love of God in our lives. God blesses us because it is the nature and promise of God to do so. In our competitive mind set, we want to know that we have deserved all that we have. In the mind of God, we are given a lot to share with others as God has shared with us. It really is that simple. ¶July 8, 2024 ¶LCM