Proper 17 / Pentecost 15 / OT 22
Devotional
Water From the Well
Lectionary Devotional For Cycle A
Object:
Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually.
-- Psalm 105:4
The reader is referred to Propers 12, 14, and 20 (Ordinary Time 17, 19, and 25) for further commentary. (The lectionary obviously likes this psalm.) This psalm is a celebration of the glory of God as it was manifested in the history of the people of Israel. The psalm can serve as a reminder to the church of the critical importance of worship. The character of God for Israel and the church is made known by a continual recalling of the deeds that God had performed among God's people. We do that through worship. "Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works." It is when the worshiping community rehearses how God has been faithful to God's people in the past that it gains courage for its future. "Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually." A church should be instructed by such psalms as these to rehearse the deeds of God's faithfulness as they are recounted in the scripture and in the church's history as well. God is not always visible in our current struggles, but frequently in retrospect, we can see glimpses of the invisible hand guiding us. It is precisely in the difficult passages of our lives that we become most aware of the mysterious, often unexpected, ways that God has cared for us. "Then Israel came to Egypt; Jacob lived as an alien in the land of Ham. And the Lord made his people very fruitful, and made them stronger than their foes." There is gospel in the minutes of our church's history that need to be celebrated.
-- Psalm 105:4
The reader is referred to Propers 12, 14, and 20 (Ordinary Time 17, 19, and 25) for further commentary. (The lectionary obviously likes this psalm.) This psalm is a celebration of the glory of God as it was manifested in the history of the people of Israel. The psalm can serve as a reminder to the church of the critical importance of worship. The character of God for Israel and the church is made known by a continual recalling of the deeds that God had performed among God's people. We do that through worship. "Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works." It is when the worshiping community rehearses how God has been faithful to God's people in the past that it gains courage for its future. "Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually." A church should be instructed by such psalms as these to rehearse the deeds of God's faithfulness as they are recounted in the scripture and in the church's history as well. God is not always visible in our current struggles, but frequently in retrospect, we can see glimpses of the invisible hand guiding us. It is precisely in the difficult passages of our lives that we become most aware of the mysterious, often unexpected, ways that God has cared for us. "Then Israel came to Egypt; Jacob lived as an alien in the land of Ham. And the Lord made his people very fruitful, and made them stronger than their foes." There is gospel in the minutes of our church's history that need to be celebrated.
