Dearest e-votees,
Psalm 46 is what is appointed for Reformation Sunday.
Peace,
Karl
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1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,the holy habitation of the Most High.
5 God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns.
6 The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord; see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.
10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Psalm 46, NRSV
When the world seems as if it is coming apart at the seams it is easy to find some comfort in a psalm like Psalm 46. There is an assurance that even when kingdoms totter and the nations are in an uproar that God is our refuge. When 9-11 happened we held a prayer vigil service. As part of that the pastor types each selected a verse to read and to meditate upon. I was one of two who chose Psalm 46. I would expect that Psalm 46 has been on the lips of clergy in Roseburg, OR as they try to help put pieces back together after the tragic shooting. I would expect that during the persecutions throughout history of the Jews that these words have not been far from the people. And when Bonhoeffer talks about the Psalter being the prayerbook of the Bible it is not hard imagining him and other martyrs of other ages finding comfort, solace and courage in the words of this psalm. God is our refuge, our hiding place and our mighty fortress. Hence the connection with Reformation Sunday.
We long for a world where the wars come to cease. We pray for a world where the tools of war are no more. We want the river that makes glad God's city. We want God to stop the tottering and quiet the uproar. We want to know the peace--the shalom--that seems so elusive for the world. We want still peaceful waters where God will make us to lie down. We want the world to stop quaking and breaking, the polar ice and glaciers to stop calving and melting before they are beyond recovery, the streets and the theaters and the schools of our country to be places of commerce and traverse and entertainment and not crime scene after crime scene after crime scene.
So we read "Be still, and know that I am God!" Is that a divine call to inaction? Are we to still our voices and not speak up against the wrong that rears its evil head? Is our best play to sit back and watch God bring the boom? No. I believe the be still is to not let ourselves become anxious. Our salvations are sure. God's promises and word are sure. God is our refuge. So we can act. And we can speak. And we can labor for justice. And we can repent. And we can seek reconciliation. And we can proclaim "The Lord of hosts is with us" knowing that the us includes all those who chafe, annoy, bother and beset us. God is the refuge of all in trouble (which is all of us and all of them). The good news of salvation and shalom is intended for all. May we continue to pray and trust and lean on Psalm 46. God help us, everyone!
God, we are all refugees in this sin-stained, war-torn and broken down world. Bring your peace and your healing in and through us. Let none who might be touched and saved by your word be excluded. Amen.
Psalm 46 is what is appointed for Reformation Sunday.
Peace,
Karl
------------
1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,the holy habitation of the Most High.
5 God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns.
6 The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
8 Come, behold the works of the Lord; see what desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.
10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
When the world seems as if it is coming apart at the seams it is easy to find some comfort in a psalm like Psalm 46. There is an assurance that even when kingdoms totter and the nations are in an uproar that God is our refuge. When 9-11 happened we held a prayer vigil service. As part of that the pastor types each selected a verse to read and to meditate upon. I was one of two who chose Psalm 46. I would expect that Psalm 46 has been on the lips of clergy in Roseburg, OR as they try to help put pieces back together after the tragic shooting. I would expect that during the persecutions throughout history of the Jews that these words have not been far from the people. And when Bonhoeffer talks about the Psalter being the prayerbook of the Bible it is not hard imagining him and other martyrs of other ages finding comfort, solace and courage in the words of this psalm. God is our refuge, our hiding place and our mighty fortress. Hence the connection with Reformation Sunday.
We long for a world where the wars come to cease. We pray for a world where the tools of war are no more. We want the river that makes glad God's city. We want God to stop the tottering and quiet the uproar. We want to know the peace--the shalom--that seems so elusive for the world. We want still peaceful waters where God will make us to lie down. We want the world to stop quaking and breaking, the polar ice and glaciers to stop calving and melting before they are beyond recovery, the streets and the theaters and the schools of our country to be places of commerce and traverse and entertainment and not crime scene after crime scene after crime scene.
So we read "Be still, and know that I am God!" Is that a divine call to inaction? Are we to still our voices and not speak up against the wrong that rears its evil head? Is our best play to sit back and watch God bring the boom? No. I believe the be still is to not let ourselves become anxious. Our salvations are sure. God's promises and word are sure. God is our refuge. So we can act. And we can speak. And we can labor for justice. And we can repent. And we can seek reconciliation. And we can proclaim "The Lord of hosts is with us" knowing that the us includes all those who chafe, annoy, bother and beset us. God is the refuge of all in trouble (which is all of us and all of them). The good news of salvation and shalom is intended for all. May we continue to pray and trust and lean on Psalm 46. God help us, everyone!
God, we are all refugees in this sin-stained, war-torn and broken down world. Bring your peace and your healing in and through us. Let none who might be touched and saved by your word be excluded. Amen.
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