Easter 7
Worship
Aids To The Psalms
The Lord is King! Let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!
Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundations of his throne.
Fire goes before him,
and consumes his adversaries on every side.
His lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his righteouosness;
and all the peoples behold his glory.
All worshipers of images are put to shame,
those who make their boast in worthless idols;
all gods bow down before him.
Zion hears and is glad,
and the towns of Judah rejoice,
because of your judgments, O God.
For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
The Lord loves those who hate evil;
he guards the lives of his faithful;
he rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
Light dawns for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!
Alternate Image
With the Singer, you rise high above the earth. Your eyes can see all things in this moment of awareness. You see all the earth, its mountains, valleys and plains. You see the wind, rain and fire unleashed upon the earth. You see the skies, clouds and stars. All this you understand is God's kingdom. God rules it with all power and majesty. The vision overwhelms you and you see just how puny the gods of human imagination are in comparison. In this vision of God and God's dominion you rejoice and sing your thanks for being a part of God's wondrous creative love.
Reflection
Most of the time we are caught up in little things, the immediate concerns and clamor of daily living. And we become myopic; so the things that are so close to us begin to seem big. How can I get all my work done? How can I cope with all the preasure of deadlines? How can I meet all the needs of my family? How can I deal with life? But then there are those moments when we draw back or are drawn back from those immediate concerns so close to us and we look at them from a new, a larger, a more enlightened perspective. At times God draws us away from our small world perceptions and gives us a quick glimpse of God's own view of the world. What seemed big then appears quite small, but significant. God grants us times of special vision and the little gods of economics, social status, political power and the like shrink in power and significance; Mount Olympus is just another bump on the earth. And, from our new vantage point we rejoice in that world which God so wondrously controls for our benefit.
let the many coastlands be glad!
Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundations of his throne.
Fire goes before him,
and consumes his adversaries on every side.
His lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his righteouosness;
and all the peoples behold his glory.
All worshipers of images are put to shame,
those who make their boast in worthless idols;
all gods bow down before him.
Zion hears and is glad,
and the towns of Judah rejoice,
because of your judgments, O God.
For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
The Lord loves those who hate evil;
he guards the lives of his faithful;
he rescues them from the hand of the wicked.
Light dawns for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!
Alternate Image
With the Singer, you rise high above the earth. Your eyes can see all things in this moment of awareness. You see all the earth, its mountains, valleys and plains. You see the wind, rain and fire unleashed upon the earth. You see the skies, clouds and stars. All this you understand is God's kingdom. God rules it with all power and majesty. The vision overwhelms you and you see just how puny the gods of human imagination are in comparison. In this vision of God and God's dominion you rejoice and sing your thanks for being a part of God's wondrous creative love.
Reflection
Most of the time we are caught up in little things, the immediate concerns and clamor of daily living. And we become myopic; so the things that are so close to us begin to seem big. How can I get all my work done? How can I cope with all the preasure of deadlines? How can I meet all the needs of my family? How can I deal with life? But then there are those moments when we draw back or are drawn back from those immediate concerns so close to us and we look at them from a new, a larger, a more enlightened perspective. At times God draws us away from our small world perceptions and gives us a quick glimpse of God's own view of the world. What seemed big then appears quite small, but significant. God grants us times of special vision and the little gods of economics, social status, political power and the like shrink in power and significance; Mount Olympus is just another bump on the earth. And, from our new vantage point we rejoice in that world which God so wondrously controls for our benefit.
