Hello friends,
This is Mark Gladman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighbourhood monk in dogs.
Welcome back as we continue to work through the Songs of Ascents,
The Psalms of Pilgrimage.
As we begin.
.
.
I invite you to become still.
Feel.
The firmness beneath your body,
Beneath your feet.
Allow your body to rest.
Into this moment.
Taking a nice deep breath in.
And out.
And as you come into this moment more fully,
Just allow yourself to be held.
By that quiet,
Faithful presence of God.
Now as we continue our pilgrimage through these ancient Psalms,
We've travelled from longing for peace to lifting our eyes in trust.
To discovering the joy of God's presence.
And learning to keep our attention fixed on the one who is faithful.
The Pilgrim does something really important.
I stopped.
I look back.
Pilgrims know that looking ahead's necessary,
But every now and then.
.
.
I also turn around.
And they do so to remember.
How faithfully God has carried them.
Memory is one of the great practices of faith.
But don't we remember not to live yesterday again,
But to recognize that the God who was faithful then is faithful still.
So let's listen to the words of Psalm 124.
And as we do as always in this first listening,
Just listen to the word or phrase that seems to rise in your heart as you hear it.
Psalm 124.
If the Lord had not been on our side.
Let Israel now say.
If the Lord had not been on our side.
When our enemies attacked us.
Then they would have swallowed us alive.
When their anger was kindled against us.
Then the flood would have swept us away.
The torrent would have gone over us.
That over us would have gone the raging waters.
Blessed be the Lord,
Who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the hunters.
The snare is broken.
And we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
Now I wonder what image?
Or word has stayed with you.
Perhaps flood,
Maybe broken snare,
Bird set free.
Our help is in the name of the Lord.
Now this psalm's a song of remembrance.
The pilgrims.
Aren't here pretending that life has always been easy.
Quite the opposite.
They remember the danger,
The threat,
The fear,
The moments when everything seemed as though it might be lost.
And the images are quite vivid,
Raging waters,
Wild animals,
Hidden traps.
We know these metaphors too.
There's seasons when grief feels like a flood.
When anxiety seems determined to pull us beneath the surface.
When we discover that fear has quietly become a snare limiting the freedom that God longs for us to know.
And what's beautiful is that the psalm does not deny those realities.
It just refuses to let them become the whole story because again and again,
The pilgrim remembers another truth,
The Lord was on our side.
Maybe today we'd say that a little bit differently.
We'd say something like,
God was with us.
And notice it's not God with them or us,
Removing the storm always,
But never abandoning us,
Even within it.
Let's listen to the psalm a second time,
And this time as you do,
Just maybe allow your mind to go back over your own journey.
And to notice the places where grace emerged.
Psalm 124.
If the Lord had not been on our side.
Let Israel's now say.
If the Lord had not been on our side.
When our enemies attacked us.
Then they would have swallowed us alive.
When their anger was kindled against us.
Then the flood would have swept us away.
The torrent would have gone over us.
Than over us would have gone the raging waters.
Blessed be the Lord who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the hunters.
The snare is broken.
And we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
So can you remember those times when you thought that you'd never make it through?
A season that felt impossible or seemed unbearable and yet here we are,
Breathing,
Praying,
Still walking.
Maybe things haven't changed,
But you're being held.
And sometimes.
.
.
It's easier to recognize God's faithfulness in hindsight.
Like pilgrims reaching the crest of a hill and then seeing the winding path that has brought them safely this far.
The rule of Saint Benedict in my own tradition.
Encourages monks to cultivate gratitude as a way of seeing the world truthfully.
Gratitude doesn't ignore suffering but notices that grace has been with us all along and maybe today your prayer is simply Thank you.
Not because every question's been answered that probably hasn't been.
But perhaps because God has never ceased.
Walking.
Beside you.
Let's listen to the psalm one more time,
And as we do.
Hear these words as your own song of remembrance and allow gratitude to arise naturally within you as it comes.
Psalm 124.
If the Lord had not been on our side.
Let Israel's now say.
If the Lord had not been on our side.
When our enemies attacked us.
Then they would have swallowed us alive.
When their anger was kindled against us.
Then the flood would have swept us away.
The torrent would have gone over us.
That over us would have gone the raging waters.
Blessed be the Lord who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the hunters.
The snare is broken.
And we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
Let's pry.
Faithful God,
As we pause this pilgrim road,
We thank you.
Thank you for the journeys we never thought we'd finish.
Thank you for the strength that didn't come from ourselves.
Thank you for companions who walked beside us.
Thank you for your quiet presence.
Recognised usually in hindsight.
When we face new challenges,
Remind us of your faithfulness.
When fear tells us that we're not going to endure,
Help us remember the many times that you've already carried us.
May gratitude become the lens through which we see our lives.
May remembering your goodness give us courage for the road that still lies ahead and may grace,
Peace and love go with us and remain with us today and always.
Peace be with you,
My friend.
And may the Christ who journeys with us remain faithful towards us in every season.
Until tomorrow.
.
.
Bye for now.
