"Restore us, O God; let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved." Psalm 80:3 Reflection: It may seem strange to turn to this psalm on the day after Easter. Yes, I know, it was the next one on the list. But it sounds penitential and pleading to me, like it is unfinished "Lent" business--- not the joyful "Christ is risen" cries we heard yesterday. On the other hand, … [Read more...] about Psalm 80 (Psalms on the Trail)
Psalms on the Trail
Christ is Risen (Psalms on the Trail)
Now the green blade rises from the buried grain, wheat that in dark earth many days has lain; loves lives again, that with the dead has been; love is come again like wheat arising green. In the grave they laid him, love by hatred slain, thinking that he would never wake again, laid in the earth like grain that sleeps unseen; love is come again like wheat arising … [Read more...] about Christ is Risen (Psalms on the Trail)
Holy Week (Psalms on the Trail)
For the eight days of Holy Week, Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday, I will not be blogging. We will continue with Psalm 80 on Monday, March 28. Even though I won't be posting on the Psalms this week, psalms are still an important part of the Holy Week observance. So here are some suggestions that you can reflect upon on your own this week. These are psalms that the … [Read more...] about Holy Week (Psalms on the Trail)
Psalm 79 (Psalms on the Trail)
For we are your people and the sheep of your pasture; we will give you thanks forever and show forth your praise from age to age. Psalm 79:13 Yes, these ponies are certainly not the sheep the psalmist was talking about. These lovely animals are technically feral ponies whose ancestors several hundred years ago were once domesticated. They have never been ridden and they … [Read more...] about Psalm 79 (Psalms on the Trail)
Psalm 78 (Psalms on the Trail)
They spoke against God and said, "Can God spread a table in the wilderness? Even though God struck the rock so that torrents flowed out and waters overflowed, can God also give bread or provide meat for God's people?" Psalm 78:19,20 A hiker in the eastern U.S. can usually count on encountering water somewhere on a day's trek, but almost no hiker goes off into the … [Read more...] about Psalm 78 (Psalms on the Trail)