A Psalm-y Kind of Day

Good morning/afternoon/evening! Right now, the sun is climbing into the sky, no one else is awake yet, and it feels like a psalm-y kinda day--you know, calm, serene, heartfelt. At least, that's what my day looks like. (I'm on vacation, remember.) I hope the two psalms from today's readings give you some of their honesty and faith.


Before we go any further, here's the question and answer from yesterday:
What did they call the place where the fire of God’s anger burned against the people? (Num 11)
Num 11:3 So that place was called Taberah, because fire from the LORD had burned among them.

And here's the question of the day:
In Psalm 29, what one word appears in 10 of the 11 verses? (Hint: other than “the”!)


And here's the reflection of the day:
I looked up "ascribe" on the website http://www.dictionary.com/ and found this definition: "to credit or assign, as to a cause or source." (http://www.thesaurus.com/ is also quite handy!)

So, to "ascribe" something is to give credit to someone for something. Imagine, then, the outrageous-osity (that's not a real word according to http://www.dictionary.com/ ) of an Israelite ascribing all the works of the world solely to God.

Living in the midst of pagan neighbors, the Israelites were rebels. Instead of ascribing the glory to Baal (a common pagan god) or to any number of gods (can't forget one for fear of making them mad!), Israel ascribes glory to Yahweh, their God.

Psalm 29 is a profession of faith. It articulates the principle which is at the heart of the whole psalter: the Lord reigns! This is the heart of the whole Bible in fact. This was a maverick psalm in its time, clearly diverging from the beliefs' of the society in which Israel lived.

For Christians, to pray through Psalm 29 is to say "for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever." It is to say, "It is not I who reigns. It is not I who is in control. Do not ascribe greatness to me. But ascribe glory and strength, holiness and power, always and only to the Lord because the Lord reigns."

I love the psalms. I love their honesty, never shying away from the whole range of emotions. I love the vulnerability of the psalms, confessing all before an all-seeing God. And I love the simple faith, which inspires me on the days when my own faith is a little dried up.

May this psalm refresh your faith this day,
Allison