rest, sunday

Sunday, September 13

Opening Prayer: Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.  He is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.  Amen.

Scripture: Psalm 62:1-12

Journal: What is the state of your soul these days?  In what ways do you attempt to find rest?  How does your soul find rest?  What does this Psalm tell you about how souls rest is found?

Reflection:

     Only in God alone can my fearful and insecure heart and soul find rest. All else, everything but Him, is simply shifting sand, shaky ground—temporal, transient, fragile. He alone is my rock, my refuge, and my fortress. O how I long for a life rooted in Him, built upon Him, where I will never be shaken.

     But unfortunately, the fact of the matter is that this very day—maybe even this very minute—I will be shaken, probably often. I will be assaulted and thrown down, probably not in body, but definitely in heart and in spirit. Somewhere along the way today I will begin to believe that I actually am just a leaning wall or a tottering fence—frail, fragile, on the verge of collapse, not enough. Somewhere along the way today I will listen to the lies and start to believe them. Somewhere along the way I will attach (the Hebrew word for trust means to attach) myself to something other than God alone—a conversation, an affirmation, a conflict, a negative comment, an achievement, an interaction—and I will be dragged around by it, knocked off balance, blown by the wind, uprooted.

     At that point I will—actually He will—have to remind, and try again to convince, myself of the truth. Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken. I'll have to listen carefully to his voice, rather than the host of others that rattle around within me.  And I will have to decide whether or not I will really believe the truth he tells me: My salvation and my honor depend on God; He is my mighty rock, my refuge. And as I listen once again to His voice, and His Word, something will begin to grow within me—trust. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart to Him, for God is our refuge. And with this I will be able, by his strength and grace, to cut the cords of all the things that I've attached myself to other than him and attach (trust) myself to him once again, my strong and loving Creator. Thanks be to God! (Pieces II by Jim Branch)

Prayers

Closing Prayer: O God, full of compassion, I commit myself to you, in whom I am, and live and know. Be the goal of my pilgrimage and my rest by the way. Let my soul take refuge from the crowding turmoil of worldly thought beneath the shadow of your wings. Let my heart, this sea of restless waves, find peace in you, O God. Amen. ~St. Augustine