Showing posts with label Psalm 98. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Psalm 98. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 19, 2021
Psalm Meditation 1114
¶ Proper 25
¶October 24, 2021
¶Psalm 98
1 O sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things. His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
2 The Lord has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
(NRSV)
¶It is not that God has ever forgotten the steadfast love in which we are held, it is that in this instance we too are reminded that God loves us and is faithful to us. In those moments in which we feel especially loved and cared for, we think of the love we receive as being remembered in a special way. The psalmist also uses this instance as a way of stressing to any doubters that we are held firmly and steadfastly in the heart of God. Seen through the eyes of love, things that appear coincidental are now seen as acts of love.
¶Remember when we thought our parents conspired to make our lives boring, by not letting us do any of the fun, adventurous things that all the other people our age were doing? Through an adult lens, we can see that it was their love for us that drove them to the decisions they made wanting ‘what’s best for you.’ Even if we continue to believe they were wrong, we may see that the decision was made out of love rather than a desire to ruin our lives.
¶God loves us, is faithful to us, and wants what is best for us, even if we don’t see it as the best option at the moment. God does not have the fear and self-preservation responses that lead some of us adults to err on the side of caution. So, when we listen to God, we know that what we are hearing really is in our best interest. When we attend to the word of God as we perceive it, we can join the whole of Creation in making a joyful noise with all the resources we have available to us.
¶October 19, 2021
¶LCM
Monday, January 28, 2019
Psalm Meditation 972
Fourth Sunday After Epiphany
February 3, 2019
Psalm 98
1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things. His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
(NRSV)
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like music. I know people whose taste in music differs from mine; however, I don’t know any who don’t like music at all. When the psalmist calls us to sing, we each have a way to join in. We can express our joy and thanks to God in some way. Some use their voices, some give voice to musical instruments, some let their hearts soar with praise without a sound coming from their lips.
The important part is to find a way to praise God for all the marvelous things we experience as people of God. Praise flows out of some people. We hear it in their voices, we see it in their faces, we experience it in the way they carry themselves. There are others whose praise is held in check for some reason. Their joy is full yet their expression and demeanor are no different than when they feel a different emotion. Either way, the joy and praise are real to each person.
The psalmist calls the whole earth to sing praises to God. Sometimes we notice the ways the earth celebrates and rejoices; waving branches, dancing grasses, roaring waves, babbling brooks, and beautiful displays of vibrant color, just to name a few. The earth and the psalmist teach us that we can express our joy and praise in a variety of ways. If it expresses our joy in the presence of God, it is a new song of joy and praise.
January 28, 2019
LCM
Fourth Sunday After Epiphany
February 3, 2019
Psalm 98
1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things. His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
(NRSV)
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like music. I know people whose taste in music differs from mine; however, I don’t know any who don’t like music at all. When the psalmist calls us to sing, we each have a way to join in. We can express our joy and thanks to God in some way. Some use their voices, some give voice to musical instruments, some let their hearts soar with praise without a sound coming from their lips.
The important part is to find a way to praise God for all the marvelous things we experience as people of God. Praise flows out of some people. We hear it in their voices, we see it in their faces, we experience it in the way they carry themselves. There are others whose praise is held in check for some reason. Their joy is full yet their expression and demeanor are no different than when they feel a different emotion. Either way, the joy and praise are real to each person.
The psalmist calls the whole earth to sing praises to God. Sometimes we notice the ways the earth celebrates and rejoices; waving branches, dancing grasses, roaring waves, babbling brooks, and beautiful displays of vibrant color, just to name a few. The earth and the psalmist teach us that we can express our joy and praise in a variety of ways. If it expresses our joy in the presence of God, it is a new song of joy and praise.
January 28, 2019
LCM
Monday, October 7, 2013
Psalm Meditation 695
Twenty first Sunday of Ordinary Time
October 13, 2013
Psalm 98
1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
(NRSV)
Sing a new song! It has such a great joyous ring to it, until we realize all that is involved in participating in that kind of newness. Someone has to write words and music that capture the joy of the moment. Folks have to learn both new words and new music at the same time. There is the frustration of all this newness at once. New may be good in some things, but having this kind of newness thrust on us can get unnerving. The excitement of the newness wears off fairly quickly when we are confronted with the full weight and meaning of that newness.
At the same time, when there is an event as momentous as a victory at the hand of God, something new seems appropriate and worth the struggle involved in bringing this new song of celebration to full life. At moments in the life of a community, something new is the only thing that will fit. We make that sacrifices needed to bring this new song of celebration to life as a project of the whole community as a way to praise, thank and honor God. It is worth all the effort and energy invested.
Somewhere between the frustration and the excitement that new things bring to us we find ourselves thinking of how frustrated and excited God must be as we make the choices that lead us sometimes closer to and sometimes farther from a relationship with God. In that moment the sacrifices we make to praise God seem pretty small. In that moment the praise we offer with all our hearts seems too little to match the magnitude and majesty of the works God does among us. And so we find ourselves refocused on the endeavor to sing a new song, a song of praise to God for this moment of marvelous joy.
October 7, 2013
Twenty first Sunday of Ordinary Time
October 13, 2013
Psalm 98
1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things.
His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.
2 The LORD has made known his victory; he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises.
5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody.
6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD.
7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; the world and those who live in it.
8 Let the floods clap their hands; let the hills sing together for joy
9 at the presence of the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
(NRSV)
Sing a new song! It has such a great joyous ring to it, until we realize all that is involved in participating in that kind of newness. Someone has to write words and music that capture the joy of the moment. Folks have to learn both new words and new music at the same time. There is the frustration of all this newness at once. New may be good in some things, but having this kind of newness thrust on us can get unnerving. The excitement of the newness wears off fairly quickly when we are confronted with the full weight and meaning of that newness.
At the same time, when there is an event as momentous as a victory at the hand of God, something new seems appropriate and worth the struggle involved in bringing this new song of celebration to full life. At moments in the life of a community, something new is the only thing that will fit. We make that sacrifices needed to bring this new song of celebration to life as a project of the whole community as a way to praise, thank and honor God. It is worth all the effort and energy invested.
Somewhere between the frustration and the excitement that new things bring to us we find ourselves thinking of how frustrated and excited God must be as we make the choices that lead us sometimes closer to and sometimes farther from a relationship with God. In that moment the sacrifices we make to praise God seem pretty small. In that moment the praise we offer with all our hearts seems too little to match the magnitude and majesty of the works God does among us. And so we find ourselves refocused on the endeavor to sing a new song, a song of praise to God for this moment of marvelous joy.
October 7, 2013
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