Hello,
Friends.
This is Mark Gladman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighborhood monk in dogs.
Welcome as we continue our work through the Songs of Ascents in the Book of Psalms.
As we begin today,
I invite you just to take a moment to become still.
Settle into a comfortable position.
Relax your shoulders.
Allow your body to fully come to rest in this moment.
Take a slow deep breath in.
And out.
Bringing your heart,
Your mind and your body fully into this moment where I also encourage you to become aware of the presence of God.
Remembering that.
God isn't somewhere else waiting for you to arrive.
God's already here,
Waiting.
Welcoming.
Delighting in your presence.
And as we continue our pilgrimage through the Song of Ascents,
We've already taken two important steps.
In Psalm 120.
We told the truth about the world we inhabit,
A world that longs for peace.
And then in Psalm 121,
We lifted our eyes beyond our fears and remembered that our help was needed.
Comes from the Lord.
And now for the first time,
The pilgrim.
.
.
Catches sight of the destination,
Jerusalem,
The Holy City.
The place where God's people gathered to worship.
To celebrate.
To remember and to renew their covenant.
You can almost hear the excitement.
The long road hasn't quite ended yet.
There's still steps to climb,
But hope has become visible.
I was glad when they said to me,
Let us go to the house of the Lord.
This joy.
Is the joy of coming home.
So let's listen together to Psalm 122.
And as you do,
Just see what words capture you.
See what stirs your heart and hold on to those words.
As we prepare to move forward.
Psalm 122.
I was glad when they said to me.
Let us go to the house of the Lord.
Our feet are standing within your gates,
O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem.
Built as a city that is bound firmly together.
To it the tribes go up,
The tribes of the Lord.
As we decreed for Israel,
To give thanks to the name of the Lord.
For there the thrones of judgment were set up,
The thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
May they prosper who love you.
Peace be within your walls and security within your towers.
For the sake of my relatives and friends,
I will say,
Peace be within you.
For the sake of the House of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.
Which phrase stood out for you?
Perhaps it was,
I was glad,
Or our feet are standing,
Or peace be within you.
There's something incredibly human about longing for a place where we belong,
A place where we're welcomed without needing to prove ourselves.
A place where our hearts can rest.
And for ancient Israel,
Jerusalem was more than a city,
It was the sign of God's dwelling among God's people.
But as followers of Christ,
We discover something even more beautiful.
The house of the Lord.
Isn't a place we have to travel to anymore,
It's a life.
That we're invited into.
Christ himself has become the meeting place between heaven and earth.
Wherever Christ is welcomed,
There is home.
Let's listen again to the psalm.
And this time just notice how often the psalm speaks of the language of we.
Psalm 122.
I was glad when they said to me.
Let us go to the house of the Lord.
Our feet are standing within your gates,
O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem.
Built as a city that is bound firmly together.
To it the tribes go up,
The tribes of the Lord.
As we decreed for Israel,
To give thanks to the name of the Lord.
For there the thrones of judgment were set up,
The thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
May they prosper who love you.
Peace be within your walls and security within your towers.
For the sake of my relatives and friends,
I will say,
Peace be within you.
For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.
Did you notice how often?
That we language came up.
Let us go.
Our feet.
The tribes go up.
So this pilgrimage.
Is communal.
Not solitary.
Faith has always been something that we share.
People who remind us of hope when our own hope grows dim.
People who pray for us when we have no words,
People who gently encourage us to keep walking.
Maybe today.
This psalm's inviting you to remember those who've journeyed with you.
The ones who first taught you to pray.
People who've carried your burdens along with you.
People whose faith has helped shape your own.
Give thanks for them.
And maybe ask yourself.
Who is God inviting me?
To encourage.
Whose pilgrimage might become lighter because I choose to walk beside them.
And so the pilgrim's joy is never private.
It becomes hospitality.
It becomes blessings.
And it becomes peace.
And now let's listen for one final time,
And as you do,
Hear the words as though you're arriving once more at the place where God delights to meet you.
Psalm 122.
I was glad when they said to me.
Let us go to the house of the Lord.
Our feet are standing within your gates,
O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem.
Built as a city that is bound firmly together.
To it the tribes go up,
The tribes of the Lord.
As we decreed for Israel,
To give thanks to the name of the Lord.
For there the thrones of judgment were set up,
The thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
May they prosper who love you.
Peace be within your walls and security within your towers.
For the sake of my relatives and friends,
I will say,
Peace be within you.
For the sake of the House of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.
Let's close together in prayer.
God of welcome.
Thank you for calling us home.
Thank you that in Christ we never walk alone.
Teach us to find our joy,
Not an achievement.
But in your presence.
Make our hearts a dwelling place for your spirit.
Make our homes places of hospitality.
Make our communities places where peace can flourish and as we continue this pilgrimage Help us to become companions for others,
Encouraging weary travelers,
Welcoming those who feel forgotten,
And seeking the good of every place where you've planted us.
May your peace be within us,
May your peace flow through us,
And may every step of our journey,
Along with grace and love,
Draw us ever more deeply into your love.
Thank you so much for being with me on this pilgrimage.
I hope you'll join me in the next episode as we continue.
Until then.
Bye for now.
