A Daily Dose of Good News
Wednesday, November 10, 2021
Today, this devotional will be offered online at https://youtu.be/-y-pEdLCm-w
A printer-friendly version of today’s devotion is available at DDGN 20211110
Additionally, if you’d like to talk about this Daily Dose of Good News further, or previous ones, have questions, or additional thoughts, please feel free to email me at sara.wunsch@engagedbygrace.org. I’d love to interactively engage with you about them.
Good morning! It’s November 10 and it’s time for our Daily Dose of Good News which is from Psalm 94.
O Lord, you God of vengeance,
you God of vengeance, shine forth!
Rise up, O judge of the earth;
give to the proud what they deserve!
O Lord, how long shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked exult?
They pour out their arrogant words;
all the evildoers boast.
They crush your people, O Lord,
and afflict your heritage.
They kill the widow and the stranger,
they murder the orphan,
and they say, “The Lord does not see;
the God of Jacob does not perceive.”
Understand, O dullest of the people;
fools, when will you be wise?
He who planted the ear, does he not hear?
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
He who disciplines the nations,
he who teaches knowledge to humankind,
does he not chastise?
The Lord knows our thoughts,[a]
that they are but an empty breath.
Happy are those whom you discipline, O Lord,
and whom you teach out of your law,
giving them respite from days of trouble,
until a pit is dug for the wicked.
For the Lord will not forsake his people;
he will not abandon his heritage;
for justice will return to the righteous,
and all the upright in heart will follow it.
Who rises up for me against the wicked?
Who stands up for me against evildoers?
If the Lord had not been my help,
my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence.
When I thought, “My foot is slipping,”
your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.
When the cares of my heart are many,
your consolations cheer my soul.
Can wicked rulers be allied with you,
those who contrive mischief by statute?
They band together against the life of the righteous,
and condemn the innocent to death.
But the Lord has become my stronghold,
and my God the rock of my refuge.
He will repay them for their iniquity
and wipe them out for their wickedness;
the Lord our God will wipe them out.
Here ends the reading.
While it’s easy to get caught up in the passion of this psalm, the psalmist is angry and is crying out to God- for God to bring vengeance and for God to bring justice because there’s injustice here. The psalmist is angry about it, the psalmist is upset about it. While all of that emotion is important to acknowledge- it’s even more important to notice what’s underneath that anger? It’s compassion for the vulnerable. Specifically, listed here, the psalmist is upset because they kill the widow and the stranger- the one who feels like they don’t belong and that they’re not connected to community. They murder the orphan- the one who doesn’t have the protection or guidance of parents, or maybe has that in an impaired way. This psalmist is crying out to God of: “Who rises up for me against the wicked? Who stands up for me against evildoers?”
I wonder if God echoes that question back to us? Can you imagine: God asking us as community here at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Who rises up for Me against the wicked? Who stands up for Me against evildoers?
I think it’s helpful to think about that as a call- that God also gives to us. There’s a portion here that says: “When I thought my foot is slipping, your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.” So I think it’s an invitation for us to step out in relationship and interaction with those around us- sharing God’s love as fully and as brightly as we can. So where can we, in God’s love, hold someone up? Where can we go and give comfort and consolation to cheer the soul of someone who has many cares of the heart?Where can we engage with someone who’s a widow or widower- in their grief and pain- specifically as the holidays get closer? Where can we come alongside the stranger who feels like they’re not a part of the community of Holy Trinity yet? Or maybe they’re not a part of the community that we’re in- outside of this congregation. Where can we welcome and embrace? Where can we come alongside of someone who maybe needs a mentor, or a bit of guidance ,or a bit of protection to strengthen them as they feel a bit defenseless. Maybe their relationships with their parents are somewhat impaired. But we can step in and be support.
So I ask this of you, while I’m in the sacristy. You may recognize the parking lot behind me. You may already know- this is the place where we keep our supplies. This is the place where we keep our robes and we keep our paraments and our banners, okay? We keep the things that symbolize God’s love in our worship. This is where we keep the vases, that hold the flowers that we donate every week for some memory or someone in need. This is where we keep the hymn books- where we sing praises to God, or the candles that we use in the healing and lament services. Or the offering plates that we use. So I invite you, just like I’m standing in the sacristy and I’m looking at the resources that might be available here for me and for our congregation to use to worship God. I’d like to ask you to consider: what resources and tools do you have at your disposal, that you can use to share the love of God to those around you- who are vulnerable and who need it? Do you hear God echoing that call to you today? Who will stand up against evildoers? Who will for My name, go fight against those who are doing wrong and protect those who are vulnerable- like the widows, the strangers and those without parents or guidance?
So good news- that we can extend the love of God in so many ways today. Think of the tools you have at your disposal to do that. That’s great news for those around you who need it, and whose souls can be comforted by you extending the love of God to them, today. Have a great day everybody. Bye-bye.
