Today's Meditation
Read Psalm 65
1Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed,
2O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come.
3When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions.
4Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple.
5By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.
6By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might.
7You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.
8Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.
9You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it.
10You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth.
11You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
12The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy,
13the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy.
Today's Daily Lectionary continues in Job, which I've been using for the past week, but the reading from Job 7 just continues the story of Job's anguish and how painful his suffering has become. Today, I decided to take a break from Job and use the Psalm reading for the meditation.
Verse 8 struck me in particular. I haven't been to earth's farthest bounds, nor lived there, but I have been blessed to have traveled widely myself and have friends and family that have been to all the continents, and nearly every nation on earth and have always been in complete and total awe of the beauty of the world. I love to travel and meet people from all over the world.
My son Tyler's uncle went to Antarctica last year and sent back pictures. AMAZING! Friends have been to Iceland and have shared their experiences (my first roommate was from Iceland and an ESL student of mine was from there) - EXTRAORDINARY! Another student shared his pictures and experiences from Siberia. Another friend shared her experiences in Russia - POWERFUL! Other friends have shared their journeys growing up in Morocco, Beirut, Sudan, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, New Zealand, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, all the Western European nations, etc... - WOW!
From Barren, Alaska to McMurdo Station, Antarctica - from the remote Galapagos Islands to the most densely populated city of Dhaka, Bangladesh, God reigns and show signs of his wonder.
May the wonder and beauty of the earth and the peoples that inhabit it fill your heart with joy this day!
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