Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 24: Year 1
Morning, Psalms 30 and 32; Evening, Psalms 42 and 43;
Ezra 4:7 and 11 to 24; Philemon 1 to 25; Matthew 12:33 to 42:
“My soul is athirst for God, athirst for the living God; when shall I come to appear before the presence of God?” (Psalm 42:2)
While all the readings for today have good messages of sound ministry, sometimes I find that the words in a Psalm more readily resonate with me. Verse 2 of Psalm 42 speaks of how my soul longs for the Lord. My cloaked or veiled soul is struggling to be in the presence of God. But as my soul approaches the Holy Presence of God, it brings the rest of me with it. This makes me nervous.
My day to day life is not perfect. I sometimes do stupid stuff, stuff I regret. My life during this time is the day time of my life. And at my passing, I will enter my night time. This understanding makes me ponder about verse 10 of Psalm 42: “The Lord grants his loving-kindness in the daytime; in the night season his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.” (Psalm 42: 8 or 10 Depending on Translation)
Every morning I play and sing hymns to my God. These hymns go to bed with me every night. I keep this discipline as it feeds my soul. My soul that is athirst for God, athirst for the living God. I can often feel the heaviness of my soul. It might even cause a rise in my blood pressure. I too ask myself, “Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul? and why are you so disquieted within me?” (Psalm 42). May my soul, as it speaks to God, it also struggles to make me behave and live the most godly life I can.
So, as we try to listen to God, It might be good to listen to our souls as they try to bring us to God. After all, God has given us our souls as the God-spark which guides us along right pathways for His Namesake, (Psalm 23). My advice to all is to: “Put your trust in God; for I will yet give thanks to him, who is the help of my countenance, and my God.” (Psalm 42: last verse)
As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John
onewhoponders 