“Before and after”

By Rev. Michael Stonhouse

Meditation – Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Psalm 119: 25-48 (Forward, p. 45) CEV p. 630

In today’s short excerpt from the much longer Psalm 119, we find a number of most ‘interesting’ before and after sequences. Some of these have to do with God’s actions and some with those of the psalmist himself:

Firstly, God’s actions:

The psalmist is at the point of death: God’s teachings breathe new life

into him (verse 25);

He told God his troubles, God answered him (verse 26a);

He is overcome with sorrow, so he asks God to encourage him even

as He had promised (verse 28);

And then, there are the psalmist’s actions, most of which follow from his various petitions to God:

God answered his prayers, so now he begs God to teach him His

laws (verse 26b);

he wants to understand God’s teachings, so he can meditate on

God’s marvelous deeds (verse 27);

“Keep me from being deceitful: be kind enough to teach me your

law” (verse 29);

“I am determined to be faithful, to respect your laws” (verse 30);

“I am eager to learn all that you want me to do: help me to

understand more and more (verse 32);

“Point out your rules to me: I won’t disobey even one of them”

(verse 33);

“Help me to understand your Law: I promise to obey it with all my

heart” (verse 34);

“Take away my foolish desires: let me find life by walking with you” (verse 37);

“Show me your love and save me, then I will have an answer for

everyone who insults me for trusting your word” (verses 41-42);

“By following your teachings, I have gained perfect freedom;

furthermore, I trust them so much that I tell them to kings”

(verses 45-46);

“I love and respect your commands: I will keep them in mind”

(verse 45).

Now, did you notice? As high falutin and praise-worthy the psalmist’s actions might be, they all stem from who God is and what God has already done or promises to do. And so, the psalmist’s life is a continual and hearty response to the faithfulness and loving kindness of our God. And so too should our lives be—and even more so! After all, we know, not only those saving acts seen of old in the Hebrew Scriptures, but far more, in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. So, how much more, should our lives be a response of praise and thanksgiving on the one hand, and a willing and hearty obedience on the other. Thanks be to God for His incredible mercy and loving kindness.

Forward notes: “Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I shall keep it to the end” (verse 33).

“An anthem with the words of Psalm 119 runs through my mind as I read today’s lesson. Singing has strengthened my faith and so have the lessons I learned while growing up in a church choir.

“Once during the prayers before communion, when we were kneeling in the chancel, two boys seated in the choir stall behind the girls started handing us things to see what we would do. First, they handed us a pen. Then an extra bulletin. Then a hymnal. Finally, they handed us as kneeling cushion, and we succumbed to poorly suppressed laughter.

“After church was over, our director gathered us in the choir hall. He said quietly, ‘The prayer before communion is the most important part of the service, and today you ruined it for me.’ We were stunned. Instead of focusing on what we’d done to distract him, he pointed to the service we had been ignoring. In that moment, the director became a teacher, giving me a lifelong lesson about the importance of being attentive in worship and respecting others, so they can too.”

Moving Forward: “What are some lessons you have unexpectedly learned?”