Reflections
“The Lord Lives!”The Psalm is saying that
the Lord is present to us,
here and now, just as
He was when He delivered
our psalmist David from his
persecutors.
persecutors.
The really key revelation for
us is that the Lord lives.
He lives among us; He is
present in the Word. Jesus
is in fact the Living Word.
He is present on the inside
of us through the Holy Spirit.
He is alive in the Eucharist.
He humbled himself to share
in our humanity, so that
we might have a share in
His divinity!
in our humanity, so that
we might have a share in
His divinity!
So Jesus is alive and well, standing
by us as our “rock of refuge, our
shield, our saving horn.” We join
with David in praising God and loving
Him with all our heart and all our mind,
as Jesus reminds us to do in the Gospel.
(Matthew 22: 37)
How do we apply the Psalm's verses to
our lives? We turn to our Lord to equip
us for the battles that we fight against the
evil one. Jesus becomes our fortress!
In this Psalm we hear David, crying out
to the Lord, as one cries out to his savior.
“My God, my rock of refuge, my shield,
the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”
David has just emerged after being saved
David has just emerged after being saved
by God from his enemies. David has been
rescued by that same God of compassion
and mercy that is present to us.
David praises his savior in language that
is familiar to us as his spiritual descendants,
“The Lord lives! Blessed be my rock!
Exalted be God my savior!”
For David has been delivered from the
forces of evil that surrounded him.
And that same deliverance is available to
us, so long as we surrender ourselves
to God and love God with all of our heart
and soul and strength.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. The Psalm affirms for us that our Lord lives! Tell of how the Lord is present
to you in your daily life. How does He reveal Himself to you?
to you in your daily life. How does He reveal Himself to you?
2. Our psalmist extols God our Savior, and speaks of the Lord as the horn
of salvation. When and how do you turn to the Lord as your rock of refuge?
of salvation. When and how do you turn to the Lord as your rock of refuge?
God reveals Himself to me through ball.
ReplyDeleteEvery day presents new challenges, especially now that our season has started. Six times per week, I wake up and think, "There will be some point today, either at a team weight-lifting session, running session, or actual basketball practice where I am going to get yelled at, I'm going to mess up, and I'm going to get discouraged."
Some days, nothing ends up going right. I go home, frustrated or angry at the result. Other days, I bounce back, make a good play, receive some praise, etc. I'm still learning that while it feels good to play well and receive the credit for it, life is bigger than praise from a coach or person in authority.
Sometimes, I'll ask God to help me in practice, and it will go well, and I think, "God was with me today." The very next day, I'll call upon God for help, and it seems like He wasn't there. This has shown me that God won't grant wishes just because I ask or pray about it. I'm beginning to realize that God probably doesn't care who wins in a drill, scrimmage, or game (although I do very much). It's important for me to praise Him whether things go the way I want or not, trusting that His plan and timing are perfect, and that my time to shine will come. That might be tomorrow, next week, next month, or even next year.
In general, I lead a safe and calm life. I have a comfortable home and my husband has provided for our children and for me, with funds to spare. We enjoy great blessings and remember to thank God for them daily.
ReplyDeleteHowever, if I think a little deeper, the enemy constantly poses a threat. He truly does "prowl around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8) He can hurl an onslaught of lies in a moment and leave me feeling anxious and hopeless without even having gotten out of bed in the morning. Or he can stir up doubt in my mind about my health, the well-being of my family, or sometimes, even of my own salvation.
In all instances, I must immediately say the name "Jesus," because I believe in His authority and the power of His Name. I must also picture Jesus and call on Him as "my strength... my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold" as we see in Psalm 18:2-3. Whether it's spiritual, mental, emotional, or physical, the battle against evil is real.
In our Gospel reading this week, Matthew quotes Jesus as referring back to the Old Testament shema prayer, in Deuteronomy 6:5. "...And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might." I have always been intrigued by the different ways we are to love Jesus. There is an emotional/heart disposition component, a spiritual and mental connection component, and a physical component of good works, only capable with the grace of the Holy Spirit.
We are multi-dimensional beings with a heart, soul, mind and body; we are to love God with all manner of our being. This is the first of the two Greatest Commandments. When I feel attacked and therefore prevented in loving God fully, I call upon the "horn of salvation" and every other image of God as my protector. In this way, I am able to overcome the nonsense, the dark lies, the imagined difficulties, or whatever weapons the enemy thinks he is throwing at me. Instead, I can walk in peace and victory, knowing that "the Lord lives; and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation..." vs.47.