Psalm 133
Reflecting on some of the road trips that I have taken my family on, I must confess that the words “how wonderful, how beautiful it is…” were not sung, but rather muttered under my breath with more than a hint of sarcasm. A cacophony of fists and kicks, elbows and screams erupting from the back seat. “How good and pleasing” it is for families to get along, can in the moment seem like a statement of hopeless optimism. Yet when I think back on those trips, I do think of them as beautiful and wonder time spent with my family…
Psalms 130 & 131
The psalm opens with a cry for help from the depths. You can hear the desperation in their voice as they plead to God, “Listen to my voice…open your ears…mercy…mercy…mercy!” The crises, trouble, or suffering of the psalmist is lived, an unavoidable part of the human experience. It is expressed in prayer openly and passionately to God. How do you pray to God? How have you experienced God in times of suffering?
Psalm 129
What do you think gave the early church such perseverance when the powers of the world were against them? Wouldn’t it have been easier to just offer a meaningless little sacrifice to Caesar than to have your house burned or worse yet, tortured and killed?
Psalms 125 & 126
The Bible is full of stories about God’s steadfast and faithful “rock-solid” love – in spite of our inconsistencies. One day Israel followed God boldly through the Red Sea, the next they were wondering in circles through the desert. The disciples lounged in an upper room, breaking bread with Jesus, listening intently to his commands and soaking up his love. By the next morning they had betrayed, abandoned and denied him. But in all of these stories there is something immovable, unchangeable, unshakable, rock solid like the mountain: We are God’s people and we stand like Mount Zion because Christ stands before us, behind us and all around us.
Psalms 122, 123, & 124
Let’s be honest…worship has been a bit weird lately. Though at the beginning the change of pace was kind of nice. It was an excuse to stay at home on Sunday morning – no need to get out of those PJs, easing into the morning, coffee in hand, the worship band playing in the background as you neatly folded over that gourmet three cheese omelet on the stove. But if you’re like me, by now the novelty of it has worn off and I miss going to church – you know, in a church building with other people!
Psalms 120 & 121
“Where are we going?” This is a question I’ve been asking myself lately, especially as I scroll through the news feeds and social media: COVID-19, George Floyd, protests, elections… It all leaves me feeling disoriented, longing for an answer to that question, “Where are we going?” It’s as if we have embarked on a journey with no clear destination, with no idea of what to expect along the way…