Saturday, June 10, 2023

Today’s Scripture Reading
Psalm 125

Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, from this time on and forevermore.

For the scepter of wickedness shall not rest on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous might not stretch out their hands to do wrong.

Do good, O Lord, to those who are good, and to those who are upright in their hearts.

But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways the Lord will lead away with evildoers. Peace be upon Israel! (NRSV)

Reflection
The moments of our lives when we find ourselves leaning effortlessly into trusting God are ever so precious and, too often, fleeting.

As I encounter Psalm 125 this morning, I am met with a unique perspective on what characterizes our capacity to trust: groundedness. When the psalmist writes that we who trust “are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever,” the writer finds a poetic description for a sense of stability and calm; an awareness of place and of the present moment; an appreciation for where and how we exist in relationship with all that surrounds us.

When we are grounded, we appreciate that we are on “holy ground” — we have centered ourselves in our awareness of the power and magnificence of our Creator, and we are met with the grace of serenity. As we are grounded, we are met and embraced by the One who, as twentieth-century theologian Paul Tillich described, “is the Ground of Being,” from whom emerges the grand, mountainous hedge of protection that surrounds us in our groundedness: “as the mountain surrounds Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds God’s people.”

In being grounded is where our true power resides. This prevents us from surrendering to the temptation to take up false sources of well-being and empowerment, here identified by the psalmist as “the scepter of wickedness.” The contrast drawn between the temptation to “stretch out to do wrong” and the confidence of remaining “unmoved” by finding our ground in God is striking, and challenging, to this day. May our actions, therefore, be rooted in our confidence in finding “the quiet center.”

Prayer
Source of All Being, may we pause to center and ground our awareness in you, both in moments of calm and, especially, in moments of unrest outside of or within ourselves. Amen.

Written by Nancy Benson-Nicol, Associate Pastor for Caring Ministries and Spiritual Formation

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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