Psalm 146
Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long. Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish. Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin. The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord! Psalm 146 (NRSVUE)
Is it just me, or does life seem to be getting more complicated as days go by? I think about how I grew up in the 80s and 90s and the responsibilities I had as a child, and compare that to the responsibilities and more importantly schedules that kids run these days. The time commitment and schedules are not even close. Kids rarely have time to just be kids. So many of our students are burned out before they even get to what should be the fun times of high school participation. Opportunities are everywhere, and heaven forbid if an adult says no to an opportunity for fear of their kid missing out. More, more, more…….
Fast-forward to living in today’s world as an adult. Somebody has to be a chauffeur to all these events, so if you’re living in that world, there goes that time. Maybe you’re a grandparent being asked to serve the same purpose! An adult can be so overwhelmed as a parent that you’re playing zone defense instead of man to man and can’t get everywhere at the same time. All self-inflicted decisions. My point to this tangent is: what are we prioritizing and praising?
None of these decisions being made by parents are wrong. I do it all the time. This week alone I will coach three baseball practices for elementary kids after coaching three junior high track practices, and it’s still March! It’s not wrong to want your kids to have opportunities and have fun with their friends, but is there a cost? Are we missing out on what is really important?
The psalm reminds us to keep our Lord and Savior at the center of everything we do. Our Lord reminds us to take some of our time to help those who are oppressed or who are in need for one reason or another. He will never give up on us, so do not give up on him. As the spring outdoor season hits, and you might find yourself being located at other places outside of the church building, know that it is ok, but to remember to include the Lord. Take a moment to say a prayer of thanks to our Lord for putting himself before us, so that we may be forgiven for our sins. As we conclude walking with Jesus to the cross these final two weeks of Lent, know that there was a cost; paid by Jesus.
Questions for Reflection:
- So you ever pause for a prayer of thanks for all our Lord of Savior has provided us?
- How has the Lord blessed you and how have you given your time to bless others?
Prayer:
Dear Lord,
As we walk with you to the cross this Lenten season, we know we are far from perfect. You have done everything to teach us to walk in your ways, but sometimes we go astray. Help guide our hearts and minds to follow your teachings so that we may praise you and all we do.
Amen
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