God Before Us

 

Show me the path of life, Psalm 16:11 preaches and teaches.  Reveal the way toward light and love and life, the Psalmist prays.  For we, like Robert Frost, often find ourselves on a path in a wood/forest that diverges.  How do we decide which ways to go?  The well-worn pathways of life are often to go with the flow, to go along to get along, to not make waves and stay under the radar.  It takes courage to talk about fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control/managing our energy with wisdom ~ Galatians 5:22-23).  The Psalmist says, “I keep the Lord always before me”. (16:8) Wait.  Hold that.  Go back and pray that verse again…and again…and again throughout the day.  “I keep the Lord always before me.” It takes courage to live this way, to let God’s wisdom (not the internet or politics or social commentary of the day) be our guide on the roads of life. 

There is a thread and theme that connects Psalm 13 through 16 ~ we began the week with being open to God’s spark, then asked God to deliver us from the midnight of our souls, then we prayed we would abide/rest in God, and today for God to guide our feet while we run this race of life.  This isn’t either or, rather, it is all the above!  We need that spark of God’s energy.  We need to be released from the heartbreak and soul ache defining our lives.  We feel drawn to make our home in God ~ and a home for God in us.  So that God can be our GPS in life.  If you turn to Psalm 17:6 (which is okay to look ahead!), the Psalmist sings out with gusto, “I call upon You, for You will answer me, O God” (note the change in language from Monday, note that in scripture there is space for you to pray, “Where are you God?!?” as well as to pray, “God, you are right here, thank you!”  Both are true). 

Continuing to 17:8, “Guard me as the apple of thine eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings.”  I love here the metaphor of flying, soaring, kissing the sky, and feeling the wind in our hair with God!  Reminds me of that great spiritual, Some Glad Morning, “Some glad morning, when this life is o’er— I’ll fly away.  To a Home of God’s celestial shore. I’ll fly away. I’ll fly away, O Glory, I’ll fly away— When I die, Hallelujah, by-and-by, I’ll fly away.”  And the promise of God is that we fly away, not only when we breathe our last, but when we set aside the ego or needing to prove we are the smartest person in the room or the desire to earn/deserve approval ~ when we die to the false self ~ we are reborn with God in a new way.  For me, this happens slowly, day-by-day.  It is my prayer that you will soar with the sacred this day in ways that you feel the cool rush of angel’s wings on your face.  Amen.