Hello,
Friends.
This is Mark Gladman,
Also known as Brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighbourhood monk in dogs.
Welcome back as we continue to walk through the Psalms of Pilgrimage.
As always,
Let's begin just by stilling ourself and bringing ourselves fully into this time together.
Take a nice deep breath in.
And slowly release it.
And another just breathing deeply in and out.
Then just allow your breathing to resume as normal.
Slowly bring your mind fully into this moment.
As you notice things about you,
Sounds,
Sights,
If you have your eyes open.
Just allow yourself to recognise them and then just bring yourself back.
Into this moment.
As you settle in,
Just become aware that you're part of a story that's much larger than just you.
Long before you were born and I were born,
There were others who walked this road of faith,
Others who prayed these psalms,
Others who wrestled with doubt,
Carried burdens,
Celebrated joy and longed for God's presence.
And just as those pilgrims were held by God's faithfulness,
So too are you.
Today as our pilgrimage draws closer to its destination,
Psalm 132 invites us to remember.
To remember those who came before us.
To remember the promises of God.
And to remember that faith isn't just about our own individual journey,
Because We walk with a great cloud of witnesses carried by stories and prayers and hopes that stretch across generations,
Not just forwards,
But also backwards as well.
And of course,
We walk with one another.
So let's listen to the words of Psalm 132 and as always in this first reading in the silence that follows.
Just sit with those words or phrases that seem to rise up to greet you as you walk along them today.
Psalm 132.
O Lord,
Remember in David's favour all the hardships he endured.
How he swore to the Lord and vowed to the mighty one of Jacob.
I will not enter my house or get into my bed.
I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids.
Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.
Let us go to his dwelling place.
Let us worship at his footstool.
Rise up,
O Lord,
And go to your resting place,
You and the ark of your might.
Let your priests be clothed with righteousness.
And let your faithful shout for joy.
So what words or phrases found their way into your heart?
Maybe it was the simple word,
Remember.
Maybe the phrase,
Let us go to his dwelling place or let your faithful shout for joy,
Whatever it happened to be,
Just allow it to sit there.
In your attention as we reflect on the psalm today.
Now you might have noted that this psalm,
Psalm 132,
Is very different from many of the other songs of Ascents.
It's longer,
It's more historical,
It remembers King David's longing to build a home for the Ark of God,
And it recalls God's covenant promises to Israel.
And for pilgrims making their way to Jerusalem.
This psalm was an act of collective memory.
They remembered the faith of those who had gone before them and the promises that had sustained their people.
Generation after generation.
And it's important to keep in mind that memory matters.
We're shaped.
By the stories that we tell ourselves and the spiritual life.
Invites us to remember not only our own experience of God,
But also the faithfulness.
That has been carried to this point by many generations before us,
What they held,
What they saw,
And how they experienced.
And understood God,
Not that we would necessarily believe exactly as they do,
Or come to the same conclusions.
But that we would enter into that collective memory with them and let the Spirit of God continue to shape and form how we live that out in our world today.
And maybe you can think of people who have shaped your own faith.
Within your own lifetime.
Or maybe beyond.
Maybe it's a parent or a grandparent.
A teacher,
Or a friend.
It might have been a saint.
A writer who you never got to meet but their words.
Have helped to shape and carry you.
Someone whose faith became a light.
On your path.
Just take a moment now to hold them.
And to give thanks for them.
The journey that you and I are walking didn't begin with us.
And it's not going to end with us either.
We are part of something ancient.
And beautiful.
It's been going on a long time before us and it will continue on a long time after us as well.
Listen again to the words of Psalm 132.
And as you do,
Just let those words of longing stir within you.
Psalm 132.
O Lord,
Remember in David's favour all the hardships he endured.
How he swore to the Lord and vowed to the mighty one of Jacob.
I will not enter my house or get into my bed.
I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids.
Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the mighty one of Jacob.
Let us go to his dwelling place.
Let us worship at his footstool.
Rise up,
O Lord,
And go to your resting place,
You and the ark of your might.
Let your priests be clothed with righteousness.
And let your faithful shout for joy.
Now I'm sure you could see that the heart of the psalm holds a longing for God's presence.
David longs.
To find a dwelling place for God.
The pilgrims long to worship in Jerusalem,
Generation After generation,
Human hearts have searched for a place.
Where heaven and earth meet,
The liminal spaces,
The threshold spaces.
And yet the scriptures continually remind us that God's faithfulness isn't contained within walls or buildings or temples made of stone.
God journeys with people and within.
People.
God accompanies us.
Through wilderness and exile,
Through celebration and sorrow.
The temporal in Jerusalem was a sign of God's nearness.
It was a sacred reminder that God desired to dwell among God's people and so This psalm is actually inviting us to ask Where have I encountered God's presence along my own journey?
Maybe in moments of prayer or in nature.
Or in silence.
Or in conversations.
Or in just that beautiful faithfulness that goes along in our ordinary life.
The God who was faithful to the ancient pilgrims.
Continues to meet people,
You and I,
In unexpected places and the promises of God continue to call us forward.
Now let's listen one final time and as you hear the ancient words once more.
Remember those who have walked before you.
And the promises that have sustained you.
And remember that you don't walk this road alone and hold that as a prayer in the silence that follows.
Psalm 132.
O Lord,
Remember in David's favour all the hardships he endured.
How he swore to the Lord and vowed to the mighty one of Jacob.
I will not enter my house or get into my bed.
I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids.
Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the mighty one of Jacob.
Let us go to his dwelling place.
Let us worship at his footstool.
Rise up,
O Lord,
And go to your resting place,
You and the ark of your might.
Let your priests be clothed with righteousness.
And let your faithful shout for joy.
Let us pray.
Faithful God,
We thank you for those who have gone before us,
For the generations who prayed these words,
For those who taught us to trust.
For those who encouraged us when our faith was weak.
For those whose lives became signs of your presence,
Help us remember your faithfulness.
When we forget where we've come from.
Anchor us in gratitude.
When we lose sight of hope.
Remind us of your promises and when we feel alone help us remember.
That we belong to a story that's so much larger than ourselves.
May we honour the faith we've received.
May we pass on love and compassion to those who come after us.
And may grace,
Peace and love go with us and remain with us today and always.
Thank you for being with me on this journey,
Friends.
We still have a few more steps to go,
But as we continue this pilgrimage.
May you discover anew the God who journeys with us,
Generation after generation,
From this time on and forevermore.
Until tomorrow.
Bye for now and peace be with you.
