For the most part, when reading the Psalms with regularity and intention, it becomes obvious that there are certain patterns that most of the psalms follow. There are the psalms that express never-failing confidence in God and God alone. There are psalms that give rise to both individual and communal laments. There are psalms thatContinue reading “Psalm 74: Remember Your Congregation”
Tag Archives: Lent
Psalm 119:73-96: Your Law is My Delight
In the massive beast that is Psalm 119, this evening’s psalms sets apart three stanzas. Being an acrostic poem, Psalm 119 not only follows the flow of the Hebrew alphabet, within each stanza, each line starts with the letter as well. This evening’s selections are the yod, the kap, and the lamed letters. The entiretyContinue reading “Psalm 119:73-96: Your Law is My Delight”
Psalm 68: God will Shatter the Heads of His Enemies
One thing is certain about this evening’s psalm: no one fully understands it. There are textual difficulties, there are translation difficulties, and anyone who tries, it seems, struggles to find a category within which to place Psalm 68. It is cyclical in nature, but is it a communal hymn of praise? Is it an individualContinue reading “Psalm 68: God will Shatter the Heads of His Enemies”
Psalm 65: By Awesome Deeds You Answer Us
This evening’s psalm is one that recalls all the ways in which God provides.
Psalm 138: You Increased my Strength of Soul
The psalm set for this evening’s prayers is a psalm of thanksgiving; it is an individual psalmist who offers her thanks before God for all the ways in which God has been continually present throughout her life. Psalm 138 is an individual song of praise and thanksgiving; in this psalm, the psalmist recalls times inContinue reading “Psalm 138: You Increased my Strength of Soul”
Psalm 51: You Desire Truth
Throughout the our lives, people of faith pray a variety of prayers; some are big, some are small, some are easy, some are difficult, and some ask things of God or of ourselves that if we fully understood, we wouldn’t dare ask because there is no way to be unchanged by them. This evening’s psalm,Continue reading “Psalm 51: You Desire Truth”
Psalm 46: Be Still and Know
As I write this, I am sipping dye in wait for a large machine to tell me to be still and to hold my breath while I get yet another CT scan. It’s time, of course. Even though Not Cancer was not cancer, it still has to be watched so to make sure it doesn’tContinue reading “Psalm 46: Be Still and Know”
Psalm 49: The Fate of the Foolhardy
After last’s night celebration and praise break, this evening’s psalm, Psalm 49 brings us back to face the complexity of the issue of death in the face of power and wealth. In the middle of this psalm is a riddle. In verses 5 and 6 we are presented with a riddle that can be summedContinue reading “Psalm 49: The Fate of the Foolhardy”
Psalm 48: The Joy of All the Earth
In the midst of the communal lament that extends past last night’s psalm, today’s psalm gives rise to a break in the lament. It is a pause in a series of laments individual and communal to give a praise break. The Psalter, it is important to remember was not always bound together this way. ItContinue reading “Psalm 48: The Joy of All the Earth”
Psalm 42: Deep Calls to Deep
One of the best things about the psalms and how they speak to us today is how to lament. A lament holds us in the uncomfortable space of disappointment and frustration, and most Christians aren’t too good at staying in this space. The way in which our church calendar moves we have time build inContinue reading “Psalm 42: Deep Calls to Deep”
Becca Kello 