Psalm 19 3rd Sunday of Lent
Beauty in the Journey Through Lent
We have so many names for God:
I Am, Yahweh, Lord, Redeemer, Rock, Protector, Father,
and my favorite Creator.
For me, I have always found God in creation, in nature;
I am amazed by the world around me!
Think of the wonders you and I see around us each day:
-an amazing sunrise or beautiful sunset
-the first flowers of spring (usually the daffodils) peeking up through snow
-the bluest of blue skies or the brilliant colors of fall leaves
-a thunderstorm which bring rain to wash the earth.
I love the Psalms;
I love how they can speak to us about the world around us, the beauty of creation.
Creation manifests the glory of its creator.
Psalm 19 is one of those psalms.
However, it is not only about the beauty that can be found in creation (those first 6 verses),
but also the beauty found in God’s law (verses 7 through 10).
This psalm has a balance between creation
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
and law.
The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul.
That 'refreshing the soul' is why we heard part of the Ten Commandments today;
the verses that talk about Sabbath, about rest.
One of my professors at seminary when talking about the Sabbath, explains that God’s hope was not for the Sabbath to be only a once a week occurrence, but that it could be a way of living our lives.
That original day of rest was supposed to be the way of our lives,
in communion with God,
and living in a meaningful relationship with God.
But with human disobedience, it was not to be.
So the psalmist is seeking God’s pardon and restoration.
The psalmist sees a connection in taking time to be in God’s creation, to rest and finding delight in God’s law, the torah.
Through the torah the Lord revives, enhances, and guides human life.
Life depends on the torah as much as it depends on the daily rising of the sun.
God’s sovereignty is proclaimed by cosmic voices and the words of God are given to humankind in God's law.
God gives us a world to live in and laws that guide us in our life.
But most importantly, this psalm affirms God's love.
Love motivated God to create humankind and bear the burden of human disobedience.
God’s love is manifested in the story of
in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
And of course, Easter morning is where our journey through Lent is leading us.
Leading us to that sunrise, that empty tomb, that renewal, that salvation.
On this journey through Lent, beauty can be embraced.
As part of God’s creation, we are full of possibilities.
How do you and I see God's creation?
In her writings, the 12th century abbess and prophetess Hildegard of Bingen says we observe creation through our senses:
In seeing, we recognize the world,
In hearing, we understand,
In smelling, we discern.
When you and I stop to take in the world around us,
the beauty of our surroundings,
we are given the gift of time:
to take a breath, to pause,
to thank our Creator.
In this is the season of Lent, a season of preparation,
we are on a journey to Easter morning.
To take a journey is to make a trip toward a place.
Although the final destination is not always clear to us, we know when we finally do arrive.
Life is full of possibilities of the path we choose to get there.
So how do you and I journey through this season of preparation?
Are we seeking God’s pardon and restoration?
Some give something up for Lent, some take on something new.
Lent can be a time for meditation, study, and prayer; a learning experience,
when you and I may learn a new way
to connect with God,
to listen to God,
to discern our path, our ongoing journey of faith.
There may be the discovery of hidden beauty,
where God shines light into the dark spaces and
thus brings out the hidden beauty found in everyday life and circumstances.
And there are dark spaces on the road to Easter morning;
to get to that morning, we must go through the betrayal by Judas, the horror of the cross, and the sadness of death.
How can we prepare ourselves for the glory of Easter morning?
One may suggest by embracing the world around us and by
examining how God’s laws influence and guide our daily lives.
The bigger question may be
how might you and I prepare for the coming day when all will be resurrected?
Our ultimate journey,
to be in communion with God,
to have that meaningful and deep relationship,
to finally have Sabbath.
I ask the question, but I do not have an answer.
Each individual discovers their own path,
we do it with help from others and as we help others,
it is done within a community of faith and fellowship,
and with guidance from the Lord above,
through the love of God,
the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and
the power of the Holy Spirit.
There is beauty on our journey through Lent.
You and I will arrive at Easter morning because we are being guided by the brightly shining, coming light of God's love and glory from that resurrection morning.
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