Re-writing from Your Heart

 

As we continue to play in the sandbox of the psalms, this week, I want to invite you to re-write the psalms in your own words.  Please note, this is not a test.  There is no grade.  Second, you don’t need to know Hebrew, I am not asking for a word-for-word translation.  I am asking you to open your sacred imagination.  I ask that you read the psalm of the day first.  You may even wish to read the words from two or three translations.  Then, let the words you’ve read evoke and provoke a prayer/song from your soul in response. 

Today, we turn to Psalm 8.  Read this through a few times, then try to hear what your shy soul is saying in response.  Here is my take:

God, You are a Genius at play.  You are not so somber or serious that it is, “all work and no play/fun/laughter/joy.”  You know what it is like to coo with an infant and color with all the crayons alongside a toddler, such actions put our enemies to shame.  I see how You twinkle like the diamonds in the sky, glow like a moonlight shimmering on the sea, and soar with the blue jay flying from branch to branch. 

With all the glory, what am I?  Who am I?  Why do You insist and persist to call us featherless bipeds, “Beloved”?

Yet, You call us to be collaborators and conspirators and co-creators.  You call us to be stewards, tending all creation with the loving respect of caring for what You are making here and now.  Help me live my human-sizeness in relationship with You.  When I survey all Your sacred imagination has brought forth, God, You are a Genius at play!  Amen.

Psalm 5

 

There is a vividness to the language of the psalms.  There is a wonderful wild imagination in the words.  In Psalm 5:9, we hear how the words of people who hurt us cannot be trusted, their hearts are malice, and their very throats are an “open grave” ~ and you thought that only happened recently with the internet!  Psalm 5 asks God to be God.  When facing the problems of this world the only options are not, “It’s all up to God” or “It’s all up to us”.  Rather, there is a messy middle where we collaborate and cooperate with the Divine.  Where we constantly ask the question what is God up to??  We ask this with others in prayer, reading scripture, in our hearts and sacred imaginations, and through conversations with others.  Realizing we never know for certain, but we tentatively step forward in faith.  There is a great scene in the third Indiana Jones movie, where he is going to get the Holy Grail to heal his father, and he comes to a cliff edge ~ there is a large chasm that he cannot just jump across or use his whip to make a swing.  He must step out in faith, into what looks like thin air.  He does.  And (spoiler alert ~ although if you haven’t seen the movie by now) there is actually an invisible bridge there.  Life can feel that way.  We seek community because we need others to share what troubles us, so we don’t feel isolated and alone.  Slowly savor this psalm with me.

¹ Listen to my words, Lord,
    consider my lament.
² Hear my cry for help,
    my King and my God,
    for to you I pray.

³ In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;
    in the morning I lay my requests before you
    and wait expectantly.
⁴ For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness;
    with you, evil people are not welcome.
⁵ The arrogant cannot stand
    in your presence.
You hate all who do wrong;
⁶     you destroy those who tell lies.
The bloodthirsty and deceitful
    you, Lord, detest.
⁷ But I, by your great love,
    can come into your house;
in reverence I bow down
    toward your holy temple.

⁸ Lead me, Lord, in your righteousness
    because of my enemies—
    make your way straight before me.
⁹ Not a word from their mouth can be trusted;
    their heart is filled with malice.
Their throat is an open grave;
    with their tongues they tell lies.
¹⁰ Declare them guilty, O God!
    Let their intrigues be their downfall.
Banish them for their many sins,
    for they have rebelled against you.
¹¹ But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
    let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
    that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

¹² Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous;
    you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

 

May God’s presence awaken a song within you, may you find ways to step out in faith ~ not as a superhero to save the day, but with others in community.  May we know the love of God is the source of the song of life.  Amen. 

Psalm 4

 

Many people grew up hearing and reading the psalms in the King James version of the Bible.  On this Thursday throwback, we lean in and listen to Psalm 4 from this translation of Scripture:

Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.

² O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? (Pause)

³ But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.

⁴ Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. (Pause)

⁵ Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord.

⁶ There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.

⁷ Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.

⁸ I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.

Go back and read these words aloud.  Which verses leap off the page/screen for you?  When was the last time you “stood in awe” at the beauty of life?  Or when this week did you feel “gladness in your heart”.  These words are prayers meant to evoke and provoke you to explore and examine your life.  May dwelling in these words be a blessing to you to find your dwelling in God today.  Amen.

Psalm 3

 

Within the psalms, sometimes we will get a note on the context.  Psalm 3 is one such place.  It is said David wrote this psalm while fleeing for his life!  His own son, Absalom (I know, great name!) rebelled and claimed the throne from his father David.  And you thought your family was the one who put “fun” in dysfunction.  David is running away with fear and terror.  You hear this in first two verses:

 Eternal One, my adversaries are many, too many to count.
    Now they have taken a stand against me!
² Right to my face they say,
    “God will not save you!”

Ever feel that way?  I know my ten-year-old self that still resides in me, feels my adversaries are too great on the playgrounds of life.  I look around and feel my middle school self, is startled when I encounter someone bigger than me who looks angry.  When I read the news or talk to people about the pool of tears in their life/battles they are facing, it can feel like “my adversaries are many, too many to count.”  I hear this in our church with our LGBTQ siblings and African Americans sisters and brothers.  I hear this in church when people feel like God is distant in their life.  I feel this sometimes when I look at the mountain of despair, we are trying to hew a stone of hope from in these days. 

David continues to sing by the campfire that night, notice how his song of blues, turns to a hymn of praise in these words,

But You, Eternal One, wrap around me like an impenetrable shield.
    You give me glory and lift my eyes up to the heavens.
⁴ I lift my voice to You, Eternal One,
    and You answer me from Your sacred heights.

[pause]

⁵ I lie down at night and fall asleep.
    I awake in the morning—healthy, strong, vibrant—because the Eternal supports me.
⁶ No longer will I fear my tens of thousands of enemies
    who have surrounded me!

⁷ Rise up, O Eternal One!
    Rescue me, O God!
For You have dealt my enemies a strong blow to the jaw!
    You have shattered their teeth! Do so again.

⁸ Liberation truly comes from the Eternal.
    Let Your blessings shower down upon Your people.

[pause]

Liberation, our freedom, comes not from others or even ourselves, but from God.  That has been, is, and will always be the good news.  That we need not be defined or confined by the words of others ~ yes, those words and actions hurt.  Yes, we lament and stand for justice.  And while we work, we seek to be a safe place where liberation can be tasted, and love can be practiced.  This is the work of God for the people of God each day.  Amen.

Grounded and Guided by the Psalms

 

Today, we tune into and turn toward Psalm 2, The Voice translation.  I invite you to slowly read ALOUD these words.  Remember the psalms were BOTH the Hebrew Hymnal and Prayer Book (as our own hymnal is too).  You may even want to pause between words and at the end of each verse.  Chew on these words of Scripture with me.

You are wondering: What has provoked the nations to embrace anger and chaos?
    Why are the people making plans to pursue their own vacant and empty greatness?
² Leaders of nations stand united;
    rulers put their heads together,
    plotting against the Eternal One and His Anointed King, trying to figure out
³ How they can throw off the gentle reign of God’s love,
    step out from under the restrictions of His claims to advance their own schemes.

⁴ At first, the Power of heaven laughs at their silliness.
    The Eternal mocks their ignorant selfishness.
⁵ But His laughter turns to rage, and He rebukes them.
    As God displays His righteous anger, they begin to know the meaning of fear. He says,
⁶ “I am the One who appointed My king who reigns from Zion, My mount of holiness.
    He is the one in charge.”

⁷ I am telling all of you the truth. I have heard the Eternal’s decree.
He said clearly to me, “You are My son.
    Today I have become your Father.
⁸ The nations shall be yours for the asking,
    and the entire earth will belong to you.
⁹ They are yours to crush with an iron scepter,
    yours to shatter like fragile, clay pots.”

¹⁰ So leaders, kings, and judges,
    be wise, and be warned.
¹¹ There is only one God, the Eternal;
    worship Him with respect and awe;
    take delight in Him and tremble.
¹² Bow down before God’s son.
    If you don’t, you will face His anger and retribution,
And you won’t stand a chance.
    For it doesn’t take long to kindle royal wrath,

But blessings await all who trust in Him.
    They will find God a gentle refuge.

I love that first verse, “You are wondering: what has provoked the nations (or our nation) to embrace anger and chaos?”  And my soul says, “YES!”  Why do human beings seek to hurt and harm each other?  What is it about us that we are so quick to be the judge and jury after skimming the headlines or scanning someone’s social media post (that is one view from a point).  Why do we “throw off (or disregard or dismiss) the gentle reign of God’s love”?  Why do we get caught up in our own schemes ~ plotting and planning?  I know that this psalm talks about God’s anger and people don’t like that.  But when set in the context of the harm and hurt humans do to each other, perhaps we need to remember that the headlines cause God heartbreak and soul ache.  God crafts and creates the whole world/all creation for relationships, connections, and to thrive.  Instead, we craft schemes to get ahead no matter how many people we hurt along the way.  Hold this psalm ~ with all its emotions.  The Psalms are rich and raw.  David Taylor says the psalms are “open and unafraid.” The psalms allow us to express our deepest fears and wounds and desires to God, so perhaps we don’t pass that pain onto others.  We plot and plan revenge with God, not because we will convince God to go along, but because eventually we hear how incompatible such ideas are with justice and love and grace.  Note the ending of the psalm, once we get the anger out of our system, we find a “gentle refuge” in God.  May that resting, renewing, restoring, and remembering who/whose you are become a space/place of refuge in God every hour today.  Amen. 

Grounded and Guided by God in the Psalms

 

A few weeks ago, in a sermon I suggested reading through the psalms.  It seems like a good idea to practice what I preach.  So, for the next few weeks, we will dare to dive into this idea.  One psalm a day, leaning in and listening to the words, exploring different translations, and even attempting to prayerfully write your own psalm.  Here is the Message translation of Psalm 1

How well God must like you—
    you don’t walk in the ruts of those blind-as-bats,
    you don’t stand with the good-for-nothings,
    you don’t take your seat among the know-it-alls.

^2-3 Instead you thrill to God’s Word,
    you chew on Scripture day and night.
You’re a tree replanted in Eden,
    bearing fresh fruit every month,
Never dropping a leaf,
    always in blossom.

^4-5 You’re not at all like the wicked,
    who are mere windblown dust—
Without defense in court,
    unfit company for innocent people.

⁶ God charts the road you take.
The road they take leads to nowhere.

When I read the first verse, “How well God must like you.”  I don’t hear that as a, “Well, aren’t you special” kind of way.  I would say Psalm 1 reminds us that “Beloved” is our first, middle, and last name.  Beloved is both a noun and a verb.  “Beloved” is both a description of who I am in relationship to God AND how I am called to be in the word.  I am both beloved to be love in the world.  When I do that, I don’t get stuck in the ruts of cynicism or constant criticism of the less-than-perfectness of the world, rather I roll up my sleeves and set out to do what I can in collaboration, cooperation, and conspiring with God.  I am careful to not get tripped up or trapped in thinking that I know it all.  Because my point of view is a view from a point.  I do want to nuance the Message’s translation of “stand with good-for-nothings,” because I believe Jesus stood with those the fringe and fray, those looked down upon and called, “never do wells”.  So, I do stand with fellow humans who are hurting and feel harmed by this world.  I do stand with those who are frustrated and fearful.  I do stand with those who feel pushed aside.  I do stand with those who think they know-it-all.  I do seek to share God’s love with those who cross my path ~ not as some strategy or scheme that I have plotted or planned, but because that is the way I live my deepest identity.  Grounded in the Source of Being ~ love; rooted in the soil of the earth from which we are all made; and seeking to share the fruit of the spirit from Galatians 5:22-23 (love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) for the sake of the world.  This is the road less traveled, but it is the road where I sense the Sacred stirring and renewing and refreshing me always.  Take time today to “chew on Scripture” and may you sense a thrill in these words.  Amen.

Praying and Playing Music

 

This weekend I want to invite you to explore music.  Maybe there is a concert going on in your community.  Maybe you pick up your hymnal and just let it fall open to a page, then sing/read or pray that hymn.  Maybe you go out online and visit the website of your favorite artist.  One new song I’ve discovered is Carolyn Arends’, “Maladjusted”.  Or listen to a song you can remember from growing up.  Or, if you are feeling really brave and bold, play some Christmas music since it is almost Christmas in July.  Have fun this weekend letting your soul sing out with joy to the One who awakens music in every heart.  Alleluia and Amen.

A Song to God

 

Today, I want to invite YOU to paraphrase Psalm 96 in your own words.  I would LOVE to have you share this with me.  Here is my attempt.

Chanting, caroling, crooning Creator, 

You both compose and conduct and create a song called, “Life”.

You invite all that is within us and around us to join in this praise of prayer.

As You bless us, we pray our hymns of hope will bless You.

Stretch us so that our songs don’t become monotone or where we just mumble or even mouth the words half-heartedly.

Awaken our sacred imaginations, unclog our ears to hear unexpected voices in the chorus, and let our hearts be strangely warmed as we open our lips.

Holy One, John Wesley invited us to, “Sing lustily”, knowing that our deepest desire is You.

So let our life be a song that gets caught up in the rhythm and harmony and rhyme You are evoking and provoking in each of us this day.

When it seems like others are on a different sheet of music, help us not cling to ours.

When it seems like life is just a noisy cacophony, redirect us to You.

When we stumble and bumble and completely miss the notes and words, remind us that in this rehearsal of life we can stop and re-group, breathe and try again.

God, You are God of all that is around us and within us.  Help us join Your sacred song this day.  Amen. And Amen.  

Keep on Singing

 

We circle back a third time to Psalm 96, because I believe the repetition and returning time and again is a wonderful way to really let the words sink and simmer and settle within us.  Rather than rushing off to find the next new and improved things with promises that surely this remedy will resolve what afflicts us today, we come back open to the familiar.  So, read aloud, slowly, noticing which of the words travel from your lips to your ears to your heart and soul.  Read aloud, open to which words leap from the tip of your tongue and immediate cause you to think, “Say what!?!”  Notice where you emphasize and where you emphatically disagree or don’t feel much at all.  Read with me Psalm 96 from the Voice Translation.

Sing a new song to the Eternal;
    sing in one voice to the Eternal, all the earth.
Sing to the Eternal of all the good things He’s done.
    Bless God name;
    broadcast the good news of God salvation each and every day.
Enlighten the nations to God splendor;
    describe God wondrous acts to all people.
For the Eternal is great indeed and praiseworthy;
    feared and reverenced above all gods, the True God shall be.
For all human-made, lifeless gods are worthless idols,
    but the Eternal plotted the vast heavens, shaped every last detail.
Honor and majesty precede God;
    strength and beauty infuse God holy sanctuary.

Give all credit to the Eternal, families of the world!
    Credit God with glory, honor, and strength!
Credit God with the glory worthy of God magnificent name;
    gather your sacrifice, and present it at God temple.
Bow down to the Eternal, adorned in holiness;
    lay awestruck before God, trembling, all people of the earth.

Shout out to the nations, “The Eternal reigns!
    Yes, indeed, the world is anchored and will not shake loose.
    God governs all people with a fair hand.”
And so, let the heavens resound in gladness!
    Let joy be the earth’s rhythm as the sea and all its creatures roar.
Let the fields grow in triumph, a grand jubilee for all that live there.
Let all the trees of the forest dig in and reach high with songs of joy before the Eternal,
For the Eternal is on God way:
    yes, God is coming to judge the earth.
God will set the world right by God standards,
    and by God faithfulness, God will examine the people.

What is percolating in this reading or singing aloud of the psalm for you today?  I love how ALL creation is part of Your chorus, which tells me that I need to listen to my fellow choir members to be in harmony with the wind and sparrows and clouds and sun.  Maybe you want to go outside and say these words to the trees and grass and all that is around us. 

Creator and Conductor, You inspire a song that has been sung before I first drew breath and will continue for centuries to come.  Help me today to listen to other humans, snails, dogs and to all that I encounter this day You have made.  Amen. 

Singing to and with God

 

This week we are singing the words at the top of our voice with Psalm 96.  Recall from yesterday that you pause after each stanza, that you want to notice where you are placing the emphasis, especially if you discover different word from yesterday leaping off the screen, and that you are reading aloud leaning in/listening for YOUR voice to get caught up in this Holy Hebrew hymn.  Today, we read/sing from the Message translation.

Sing God a brand-new song!

Earth and everyone in it, sing!

Sing to God—worship God!

Shout the news of God victory from sea to sea,

Take the news of God glory to the lost,

News of God wonders to one and all!

For God is great, and worth a thousand Hallelujahs. Pause

God furious beauty puts the other gods to shame;

Pagan gods are mere tatters and rags.

God made the heavens—

Royal splendor radiates from God,

A powerful beauty sets God apart.

Bravo, God, Bravo!

Everyone join in the great shout: Encore! Pause

In awe before the beauty, in awe before the might.

Bring gifts and celebrate,

Bow before the beauty of God,

Then to your knees—everyone worship!

Get out the message—God Rules!

God put the world on a firm foundation;

God treats everyone fair and square.

Let’s hear it from Sky,

With Earth joining in,

And a huge round of applause from Sea.

Let Wilderness turn cartwheels,

Animals, come dance,

Put every tree of the forest in the choir—

An extravaganza before God as God comes,

As God comes to set everything right on earth,

Set everything right, treat everyone fair. Pause

If all life is worship, your life and mine, how do we join in the chorus of our Creator?  Does today feel like it was written in a major key or minor or maybe it is the sound of sheer silence (which remember is God’s original language).  What hymns do these words above provoke?  Maybe, “How Great Thou Art,” or “Love Divine, All Love’s Excelling”.  Go ahead and let me know what hymns you hear in these words and are playing in the jukebox of your soul today.  May today find you caught up in the new song God is singing here and now.  Amen.

Psalm 96 take one

 

This week, I invite you to dive and dwell into Psalm 96 with me.  This is a hymn of praise, a hymn to open our lives to God, who is the Composer and Conductor of life.  The One who evokes and provokes a NEW song.  God tells us we don’t have to just keep reading and singing from only what we know.  There are new melodies and harmonies and words that need to be explored, experienced, and expressed in YOUR life and my life this week.  A few reminders about praying the Psalms.  Even though this Psalm doesn’t have “Selah” or invitations to pause, built or baked in, I did break the Psalm into stanzas so YOU could stop, breath, reflect on what you just read.  Secondly, hymns are not meant to be read silently, only to be confined and contained in your mind.  Hymns, especially this one, are meant to be proclaimed aloud.  So, read this aloud, noticing where you put the emphasis.  For example, is it, “O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.” (where the word, “sing” is emphasized)  Or is it, “O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth?” (or do you emphasize the word, “new”).  Where do you find yourself wondering, what is this new song I long to sing?  Or is it, “O sing to the Creator a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.” Where you want to go out and serenade the sparrows with these words.  You may need to read this aloud two or three times.  Take your time, savor these words slowly, like each syllable is delicious food to feed your soul and water to refresh your thirst!

Once you’ve read it a few times, I’ll be back to wrap us up.

From the New Revision Version

O sing to the Lord a new song;
    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord; bless God name;
    tell of God salvation from day to day.
Declare God glory among the nations,
    God marvelous works among all the peoples.
For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised;
    God is to be revered above all gods. Pause

For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
    but the Lord made the heavens.
Honor and majesty are before God;
    strength and beauty are in God sanctuary.

Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
    ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due God name;
    bring an offering, and come into God courts.
Worship the Lord in holy splendor;
    tremble before God, all the earth. Pause

Say among the nations, “The Lord is king!
    The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved.
    God will judge the peoples with equity.”
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
    let the sea roar and all that fills it;
    let the field exult and everything in it.
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
    before the Lord, for God is coming,
    for God is coming to judge the earth.
God will judge the world with righteousness
    and the peoples with God truth. Pause

Where does your life today, “flow on in endless song above earth’s lamentations?”  Where do you join with all people in singing out praise?  For what, who, when, and why do you give thanks to God or offer gratitude?  What did you hear from your lips sing to your heart and soul in these words?  God how can I help from singing??  Help me today to stay in touch and tune with You, O Composer and Conductor of the symphony of life, all life, I pray.  Amen. 

Friday Prayer

 

This week, you have prayed and played with Psalm 46.  I pray you found this meaningful and you experienced moments of new insights and of God’s presence with you.  Please pray with me.  

God, in the middle of July, meet us in the center of our lives.  For some, there is a chaos that resides right now in our souls.  The storms of life rock the small boats we travel upon.  For others, there is a peaceful calm of resting in You.  For still others, the stillness is restlessness and we long for a light breeze at our back to help us as we navigate this world.  God, since the Exodus, You have been on the move wherever Your people are.  We pray this would be our experience ~ to encounter You in the wilderness of life this day.  Meet us where we are, remind us You are, and help us be open to what will be as we enter the second half of this year.  Amen and Amen. 

Psalm 46

 

Today, I want to invite YOU to paraphrase Psalm 46 in your own words.  I would LOVE to have you share this with me.  Here is my attempt.

God, You are the roof over our heads and the root that nourishes our lives,

When the thunder crashes and the lightning flashes, when people criticize and fear lodges 

in the back of our throats,

You are there.

So, why do we like Adam and Eve play hide and seek with You?

Why do we continue to try to adjust to a weary world as the norm, rather than Your love?

When the news gnashes its terrible teeth.

When social media splashes its cynicism and criticism pointing out that nothing is perfect.

When the winds of change swirl with hurricane force around us and within us,

Calm and center us in You.

Pause.

Remind us of our beloved-ness, that in baptism You claimed and named us.

When we are out, let us listen to the clouds preaching of Your grace.

When we close our eyes, remind us that You are there.

When we awake, You are there to whisper, “Good morning!”

If this is true, then trouble doesn’t get the final say. 

Evil may not be out of business; but we don’t need to shop there.

Pause.

Help us, strength us, awaken us to an awareness of You.

Let these words be more than words spoken aloud by our lips.

Let this be a prayer we embody and embrace every moment today.  

Amen.  And Amen. And Amen.

Psalm 46 take 3

 

We return to Psalm 46.  Wait, you think, there are 150 psalms, why do we keep coming back to this one!?!  I am so glad you asked.  So often in our life we keep searching for the splashy and spectacular.  We want what is new and different.  Returning and repeating a psalm a few times can cause the words to go deeper than just one or two readings.  So, read aloud the words below with attention and intention, slowly saying each syllable.  I invite you to notice which of the words travel from your lips to your ears to your heart and soul.  Read aloud, with openness to which words leap from the tip of your tongue and immediately cause you to think, “Say what!?!”  Notice where you emphasize words and where you emphatically disagree or don’t feel much at all.  Read with me Psalm 46 from the Voice Translation.

God is our shelter and our strength.
    When troubles seem near, God is nearer, and God is ready to help.
So why run and hide?
No fear, no pacing, no biting fingernails.
    When the earth spins out of control, we are sure and fearless.
    When mountains crumble and the waters run wild, we are sure and fearless.
Even in heavy winds and huge waves,
    or as mountains shake, we are sure and fearless.

[pause]

A pure stream flows—never to be cut off—
    bringing joy to the city where God makes His home,
    the sacred site where the Most High chooses to live.
The True God never sleeps and always resides in the city of joy;
    God makes it unstoppable, unshakable.
    When it awakes at dawn, the True God has already been at work.
Trouble is on the horizon for the outside nations, not long until kingdoms will fall;
    God’s voice thunders and the earth shakes.
You know the Eternal, the Commander of heavenly armies, surrounds us and protects us;
    the True God of Jacob is our shelter, close to God’s heart.

[pause]

Come, gaze, fix your eyes on what the Eternal can do.
    Amazing, God has worked desolation here on this battlefield, earth.
God can stop wars anywhere in the world.
   God can make scrap of all weapons: snap bows, shatter spears,
    and burn shields.
“Be still, be calm, see, and understand I am the True God.
    I am honored among all the nations.
    I am honored over all the earth.”
You know the Eternal, the Commander of heavenly armies, surrounds us and protects us;
    the True God of Jacob is our shelter, close to God’s heart.

[pause]

What did you hear yourself saying today?  What thoughts rumbled within you as you read?  What emotions did you feel?  What questions do you have today?  What was provoked and evoked in the psalm in this translation?  I love the closing four words of this translations, “Close to God’s heart.”  That is what I seek and where I long to permanently live and how I want to approach this day.

God, You fling wide open Your heart as You greet me today.  Continue to hold me and help me notice that where I am, there You are as well.  Let this truth make all the difference this day and this week.  Amen.

Psalm 46

 

This week we are playing with and praying Psalm 46.  Recall from yesterday that you paused after each stanza, I encouraged you to notice where you are placing the emphasis.  I invite you to the same way of reading today.  Notice which words leap off the page/screen on this day, especially if it is different from yesterday.  I encourage you to read aloud ~ leaning in/listening for YOUR voice to get caught up in this Holy Hebrew hymn.  Today, we read/sing from the Message translation.

God is a safe place to hide,
    ready to help when we need him.
We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,
    courageous in seastorm and earthquake,
Before the rush and roar of oceans,
    the tremors that shift mountains.

    Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
    God-of-Angel-Armies protects us. Pause

River fountains splash joy, cooling God’s city,
    this sacred haunt of the Most High.
God lives here, the streets are safe,
    God at your service from crack of dawn.
Godless nations rant and rave, kings and kingdoms threaten,
    but Earth does anything he says.

    Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
    God-of-Angel-Armies protects us. Pause

Attention, all! See the marvels of God!
    God plants flowers and trees all over the earth,
Bans war from pole to pole,
    breaks all the weapons across his knee.
“Step out of the traffic! Take a long,
    loving look at me, your High God,
    above politics, above everything.”

    Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,

    God-of-Angel-Armies protects us. Pause

Where do you long for protection as you stand on the cliff-edge of life?  Where do you wrestle with God right now?  How might this moment of paying attention to God’s marvels and mystery leave a lingering impression upon the hours to come today?  Let these questions sink and settle and sing to your soul.

God who splashes and stirs and swims in the sea called, “Life”, help us when the waters foam with white-caps and cause our stomachs to do somersaults amid the rapids we traverse. Let the stillness of being wrapped in Your sacredness here and now, extend to then and there every moment today.  Amen.  

Psalm 46

 

This week, I invite you to ponder prayerfully, slowly savoring Psalm 46 with me.  This is a hymn of trust, a hymn of awakening awareness to the Holy hovering and humming in our lives.  This is a reminder that God is a close as our next breath.  As you read the passage below from the NRSV, note the word, “Selah”, this simply means, “pause”.  It is a stop sign, a rest, a chance to catch your breath and open your sacred imagination to the words you just read.  Secondly, hymns are not meant to be read silently, as if to be confined and contained in your mind.  Hymns in the Hebrew prayer/songbook of the Psalms were/are meant to be proclaimed aloud.  So, read this aloud, noticing where you put the emphasis.  For example, is it, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”  Or is it, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble!!!”  Or is it, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble??? (As in, did you read the headlines this morning!?!)”  Do you speak this with confidence or curiosity or a lot of questions.  You may need to read the words below aloud two or three times.  Take your time, savor these words slowly, like you would an ice cream cone on a warm Florida day.  Once you’ve read it a few times, I’ll be back to wrap us up. 

From the New Revision Version

God is our refuge and strength,

    a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,

    though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea,

though its waters roar and foam,

    though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah/Pause

 

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

    the holy habitation of the Most High.

God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;

    God will help it when the morning dawns.

The nations are in an uproar; the kingdoms totter;

    God utters God’s voice; the earth melts.

The Lord of hosts is with us;

    the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah/Pause

Come, behold the works of the Lord;

    see what desolations he has brought on the earth.

God makes wars cease to the end of the earth;

    God breaks the bow and shatters the spear;

    God burns the shields with fire.

“Be still, and know that I am God!

    I am exalted among the nations;

    I am exalted in the earth.”

The Lord of hosts is with us;

    the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah/Pause

Which word or phrase stuck and stood out for you today?  Where do you have questions or insights or want to know more?  Let this Psalm/Holy Hebrew Hymn/Prayer book roam and rummage around your life today.  

God, whose Presence enfolds and holds me, meet me amid the foaming, frustrating chaos of the weary world today. Melt the moments of fear that get caught in the back of my throat with Your grace that grows in my life morning-by-morning so that today new mercies of Your loving-kindness I will be aware and aware of every moment.  Amen.

Friday Prayer

 

Gracious God who is there every moment of every day, thank you for moments when I sensed Your presence close as my next breath.  Thank you for the ways I was able to slow down.  Thank you for the invitation to offer my life to You and that worship is more than one hour on Sundays.  Thank you for the treasures I encountered this week.  Continue to be with me in these July days.  Continue to help me practice Your presence, open to the mystery of every moment, knowing that life is not a math problem to be solved but an experience to be enjoyed and explored.  O God who is the Eternal Interior, guide me with an unceasing grace and unconditional love that I see, hear, taste, touch, and holds me close inspiring the living out of these days.  Amen.