April 26th — Psalm 56

“Be gracious to me, O God, for people trample on me; all day long foes oppress me; my enemies trample on me all day long, for many fight against me. O Most High, when I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I am not afraid; what can flesh do to me? All day long they seek to injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil. They stir up strife, they lurk, they watch my steps. As they hoped to have my life, so repay them for their crime; in wrath cast down the peoples, O God! You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your record? Then my enemies will retreat in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I am not afraid. What can a mere mortal do to me? My vows to you I must perform, O God; I will render thank offerings to you. For you have delivered my soul from death, and my feet from falling, so that I may walk before God in the light of life.” Psalm 56

Many times we feel helpless when people attack us — our reputations and our actions. Stress is as much a pandemic in these times lately, let alone the virus called Covid-19, the stress that comes from the comments of those who disagree with us on Social Media and other sites and so many venues. I think the longer we are all cooped up, the more frustration will come spilling out as well. Soon we find ourselves not only afraid of hidden viruses, but also suffering from an overwhelming sense of fear, helplessness and hopelessness.

Like so many before us, if we could run away, we would fly away to some distant land to be at rest. Sometimes we can — but as is the case right now, we simply cannot run away. So, while we are hunkering down and sheltering in place, now is a good time to put more trust in our G-d and spend more time in the Word of G-d. The Psalms remind us to pray to G-d for help, and to expect that we will receive not only help, but G-d’s abundant love as well.

Captain Ahab in Moby Dick says, “I will have no man on my ship who does not fear a whale”. Fear of whales or snakes or even spiders may be very real for many people, imaginary fears are a drain on our energy and will leave us tired and listless. Running away from our fears and troubles is usually always futile — approaching G-d and seeking G-d’s love, mercy and Grace is well within our daily schedules — or at least it should be.

PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, victim for our sins, you trusted in your Father’s protection and kept silent when you were tormented. Give us that same confidence, that we may gladly suffer with you and for you, offering the Father our sacrifice of praise and walking before him in the light of the living; and to you be the glory now and forever.

Amen.

April 27th — Psalm 57

“Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, until the destroying storms pass by. I cry to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me. He will send from heaven and save me, he will put to shame those who trample on me. God will send forth his steadfast love and his faithfulness. I lie down among lions that greedily devour human prey; their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongues sharp swords. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth. They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed down. They dug a pit in my path, but they have fallen into it themselves. My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast. I will sing and make melody. Awake, my soul! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn. I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is as high as the heavens; your faithfulness extends to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let your glory be over all the earth.” Psalm 57

When we undergo suffering we need to keep going to God and tell Him how much we need Him in our struggle. Suffering often brings about thoughts of revenge, anger, feeling of injustice, self-pity and other unholy emotions. Therefore, we must humbly admit that we desperately need God’s mercy when we come to Him. We learn how to take refuge for our souls in God alone and not in anyone or anything else, but Him. Jesus often taught us to persevere in prayer. We must tell God that we will not give up clinging to him and trusting Him until the disaster has passed.

God allows suffering to purify us and make us fit for greater purposes. If we refuse the suffering that God allows in our life, we will never get purified and we will not be fit for the higher purposes that God has in store for us. God is the potter and we are the clay and we must allow God to deal with us.

When we pray we often want to see immediate results and when they are not forthcoming then we get very discouraged. We must learn to trust that God hears our prayers and that He does act on our behalf in the heavens — sending His love and faithfulness. Sometimes His answer is delayed due to evil spiritual opposition, but in not giving up we will receive all that God has in store for us.

PRAYER

Lord, send your mercy and your truth to rescue us from the snares of the devil, and we will praise you among the peoples and proclaim you to the nations, happy to be known as companions of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you. Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness. Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.” Psalm 51:1-16

The words, “Create in me a clean heart” from Psalm 51, have long been a part of the church’s worship life. For example, in Evangelical Lutheran Worship, four hymn settings of verses 10-12 are available as options for each of ten worship settings (see ELW pages 106, 128 and hymns 185-188). And, for the astute listener, this petition is not only a prayer for individuals in distress, but it is also a prayer for the community on Ash Wednesday and for the worship of G-d’s People each week.

There are certain Psalms that I would encourage any Christian to remember certain lines, and verses, and to memorize them if possible. Psalm 51 is one of those Psalms. We have been given a lot to handle in these last four to five weeks — and it is in times like these that we should turn to the Psalms to find some comfort.

PRAYER

Almighty and merciful Father, you freely forgive those who, as David of old, acknowledge and confess their sins. Create in us pure hearts, and wash away all our sins in the blood of your dear Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

April 22nd — Psalm 52

“Why do you boast, O mighty one, of mischief done against the godly? All day long you are plotting destruction. Your tongue is like a sharp razor, you worker of treachery. You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking the truth. You love all words that devour,O deceitful tongue. But God will break you down forever; he will snatch and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. The righteous will see, and fear, and will laugh at the evildoer, saying, “See the one who would not take refuge in God, but trusted in abundant riches, and sought refuge in wealth!” But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. I will thank you forever, because of what you have done. In the presence of the faithful I will proclaim your name, for it is good.” Psalm 52

Psalm 52 sets before us two different approaches to life – those who are into devouring — and those who are into trusting. Which one do you think G-d wants us to do? Of course, it is better to trust — it is to each persons long-range benefit to learn to trust our G-d.

But leaving that duality behind just for the moment, you have to be intrigued with the image of “a green olive tree in the house of God.” Have you ever felt like a tree flourishing in G-d’s house? What could this mean? I believe G-d wants all of creation to live a life where they feel as if they can flourish — especially in the house of the Lord. The Prophet Jeremiah writes: “The Lord once called you, ‘A green olive tree, fair with goodly fruit’; but with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed.” I am not so sure that the church has a more refined history of setting fire to the fresh growth of new ideas than it does in allowing newness and change to flourish. We should always be reminding ourselves that if flourishing is to continue, it needs to continue to deepen and strengthen its roots or it, too, will fail.

The image of a green olive tree is not a cause for pride, but an investment in deeper roots to have greener leaves and more bountiful fruit. When satisfaction sets in, roots wither, ever so slightly at first, and fruits are reduced. It’s not easy being green.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, you cut down the unfruitful branch for burning and prune the fertile to make it bear more fruit. Make us grow like rich olive trees in your kingdom, firmly rooted in the power and mercy of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord

Amen.