Monday, June 19, 2017

Psalm for Sunday, June 25, 2017


Reflections




"You who seek God, may your hearts revive!"

 
Like Jeremiah, our psalmist cries out to the Lord
and seeks relief from suffering. The psalmist bears
insult for the sake of God as a consequence of his
zeal for the Lord. 

Yet the verses are a plea to God and a remedy 
for the distress into which the psalmist has sunk. 
Crying out to God with trust in God’s great love 
is the only answer for those lowly ones who are
cast down and persecuted. Seek the Lord and
your hearts will revive! The Lord hears the cry 
of the poor.

The Gospel echoes the confidence of the psalm's 
verses. Jesus affirms that we are to proclaim the 
Gospel from the housetops and fear not our 
enemies who are powerless to kill the soul.  
(Matthew 10:27-28)

As the psalm says, even if we are in bonds the 
Lord  will not spurn us. For the Lord in his great 
love will answer us. The psalmist stands on firm 
ground though he was cast out by family and friends.
In the Gospel Jesus confirms that He is on the side 
of those who acknowledge Him as Lord.

Are we bearing insult for our God; do our brothers 
cast us out because of the our faith; have we become 
a stranger to our children because zeal for the Lord
consumes us? If so, we are in good company because
Jesus suffered the insults of those who denied him.

What is our remedy? There is only one way to turn,
as our psalmist says. Pray to the Lord, that in His 
great love He will answer us, that He will favor us, 
and that He will help us. No one else is merciful like 
the Lord; no one else has unlimited amounts of 
kindness; no one else has the power to revive us 
from the inside out. We are His own and His
own who are in bonds He spurns not. 

Amen


Discussion Questions for Reflection

1.  Have you been spurned by family or friends because of your faith?
How do you respond?

2.  Have you born insult for the sake of the Lord?  How did you handle it?



 

1 comment:

  1. "You who seek God, may your hearts revive!”

    Yes, the palmist assures us that we will get a remedy for our pain, suffering, insult, and shame, and from being persecuted by our neighbor because of our faith in God.
    If I endure the scorn and continue to seek You, my heart will revive because of your great love and mercy. And Jesus confirms that He is on the side of those who acknowledge You as Lord. And so I can turn to God and ask you to save me and to help me.

    You said that those who hope in You will never be disgraced. And so I am not worn out calling for help from you, almighty God. You will favor me because there is no one merciful, kind and loving like you. I have no doubt that You have power to transform me and change me from inside out. You confirm that my heart will be revived when I seek my Lord.

    Yes, there were times that I was being insulted by my mother because of my wrong doings. In my mouth I proclaimed Jesus, but my action did not follow accordingly. I got mad and felt ashamed. What made things worse was that I picked a fight with her for my defense. I should have endured the insult, instead of yelling at her. I handled that situation poorly. I felt remorse for my weakness. I always need to ask God for the strength and willpower to remain steadfast for the glory of God.

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