“But, but, but”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Wednesday, December 20, 2023
Psalm 119: 49-72 (Forward, p. 52) CEV p. 630
I once heard a preacher tell us that the word ‘but’ has no place in Christian discipleship, as in “I want to do your will, Lord, but…”. He further explained that only goats, not sheep, have butts.
Today’s passage from Psalm 119 has a whole bunch of buts. However, here they are used in a more positive way:
“Conceited people sneer at me, but I obey your Law” (verse 51);
“Evil people may set a trap, but I obey your Law” (verse 61);
“Once you corrected me for not obeying you, but now I obey” (v. 67);
“My reputation is being ruined by conceited liars, but with all my heart
I follow your teachings” (verse 69);
“Those liars have no sense, but I find happiness in your Law” (v. 70).
Notice how often the psalmist’s ‘but’ is in response to something, to something that he or someone else has done: conceit, sneering, setting a trap, or lying on the part of other people, or disobedience on his own part. In the former case, it reminds us that the actions of other people are their own problem and responsibility; how we react to them is ours.
And how does our psalmist respond? With obedience to the Law, with following God’s teachings, with finding happiness therein. And so, his focus is not on other people and their nastiness or less than positive dealings. He decides that he is not going to let these exterior things bother him or get him down. No, his focus will be on how he might better serve God and obey His teachings and Law.
And, why is that? Why is he so adamant about that? Because God’s laws have stood the test of time (verse 52). And certainly, they can be trusted (verse 69); And furthermore, they bring life and comfort and bring about good in the person’s life. And so, the psalmist values God’s laws, and
values obedience to them, far more than ‘a thousand pieces of silver and gold’ (verse 72). Would that these things could be said of all of us. Amen.
Forward notes: “Your statutes have been like songs to me wherever I have lived as a stranger” (verse 54).
“I attended a church in Iowa while researching a book. More than a thousand miles from home, I knew absolutely no one, but as I, the stranger, stood and said the familiar words of the liturgy, I felt part of the community.
“Some emergency had rendered the organ unworkable, so a pianist and jazz musicians from the local university provided the music. I have played jazz myself, but normally I sing traditional church music in my home parish. These hymn arrangements made everything sound new, as if I were encountering old hymns and service music for the very first time. I can’t remember any of the arrangements these musicians played that day, but I do remember how their music transformed me not just by the sounds they made but through their creative focus. That morning God’s statutes literally became songs to me.”
Moving Forward: “What songs bring God to life for you? Share them with us at #ForwardDaybyDay.”