"God Pause Daily Devotional" from The Luther Seminary of Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States for Tuesday, 26 April 2016 with Scripture: Psalm 67

"God Pause Daily Devotional" from The Luther Seminary of Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States for Tuesday, 26 April 2016 with Scripture: Psalm 67

Psalm 67:(0) For the leader. With stringed instruments. A psalm. A song:

2 (1) God, be gracious to us, and bless us.

May he make his face shine toward us, (Selah)

3 (2) so that your way may be known on earth,

your salvation among all nations.

4 (3) Let the peoples give thanks to you, God;

let the peoples give thanks to you, all of them.

5 (4) Let the nations be glad and shout for joy,

for you will judge the peoples fairly

and guide the nations on earth. (Selah)

6 (5) Let the peoples give thanks to you, God;

let the peoples give thanks to you, all of them.

7 (6) The earth has yielded its harvest;

may God, our God, bless us.

8 (7) May God continue to bless us,

so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.

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In the Garden of Eden that sneaky slithery snake introduces the big lie: we know better than God; or perhaps that we don't really need God at all; or even that we can be our own God. Adam and Eve, and subsequently the rest of us, bite.

The act of praise is the antidote to the poison of that lie which infects every aspect of life. Praise, at least for a few moments, is the act of putting our true relationship with God back in place. It is rejecting the big lie. We put ourselves aside and stand before the great unknowable mystery of existence and acknowledge that God is God and we're not. It's not an easy thing to do because our ego still so easily gets in the way again as we congratulate ourselves on our lovely praising. True praise is an act of pure humility--of letting go of our self-centered narcissism and turning wholeheartedly to God. Perhaps in those rare moments of true praise we also discover "God's saving power among all nations"--when we turn from the big lie that we ourselves are God and instead acknowledge and revel in the good news that God is God and the source of our life with its grace and blessings. 

Enable us God to turn from the big lie and praise you, even if only for a few brief moments right now. Amen.

Tim Kellgren

Retired, Elim Lutheran Church, Petaluma, Calif.

Master of Divinity, 1971

Psalm 67:1 May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, (Selah)

2 that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations.

3 Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you.

4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. (Selah)

5 Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you.

6 The earth has yielded its increase; God, our God, has blessed us.

7 May God continue to bless us; let all the ends of the earth revere him. [New Revised Standard Version]
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