Christ is Risen!
I had a lovely Easter Sunday – sang in the choir for two services, where we invite folks from the congregation to join us in singing the Hallelujah Chorus, with orchestral accompaniment. The 11:00 service especially had many voices raised and was magnificent. Then I had Easter dinner with a dear friend since childhood and her family – and got some much-needed Mom hugs from her Mom besides.
Since I’ve been doing the Laments for Lent series, I wanted to do a follow-up on Easter. Instead of looking at Laments, I want to look at two Psalms of Trust.
Psalms of Trust don’t have a particular form like the Lament, but they do have seven Key Concepts that show up (not all of them in all Psalms of Trust, but definite themes):
• Trust
• Refuge
• No Fear
• Vindication
• Guidance
• Deliverance
• Faithfulness
Since it’s already been a long day, I think I will just type out these two Psalms of Trust related to Easter. But as always, let me recommend that you try following the example of the psalmists and try praying to God using these themes as a jumping-off point.
Psalm 31 is the other Psalm Jesus quoted on the cross with the words, “Into your hands I commit my spirit.” Here’s the rest of this beautiful Psalm:
Psalm 31–
In you, LORD, I have taken refuge;
let me never be put to shame;
deliver me in your righteousness.
Turn your ear to me,
come quickly to my rescue;
be my rock of refuge,
a strong fortress to save me.
Since you are my rock and my fortress,
for the sake of your name lead and guide me.
Keep me free from the trap that is set for me,
for you are my refuge.
Into your hands I commit my spirit;
deliver me, LORD, my faithful God.
I hate those who cling to worthless idols;
as for me, I trust in the LORD.
I will be glad and rejoice in your love,
for you saw my affliction
and knew the anguish of my soul.
You have not given me into the hands of the enemy
but have set my feet in a spacious place.
Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am in distress;
my eyes grow weak with sorrow,
my soul and my body with grief.
My life is consumed by anguish
and my years by groaning;
my strength fails because of my affliction,
and my bones grow weak.
Because of all my enemies,
I am the utter contempt of my neighbors
and an object of dread to my closest friends –
those who see me on the street flee from me.
I am forgotten by them as though I were dead;
I have become like broken pottery.
For I hear many whispering,
“Terror on every side!”
They conspire against me
and plot to take my life.
But I trust in you, LORD;
I say, “You are my God.”
My times are in your hands;
deliver me from the hands of my enemies,
from those who pursue me.
Let your face shine on your servant;
save me in your unfailing love.
Let me not be put to shame, LORD,
for I have cried out to you;
but let the wicked be put to shame
and be silent in the realm of the dead.
Let their lying lips be silenced,
for with pride and contempt
they speak arrogantly against the righteous.
How abundant are the good things
that you have stored up for those who fear you,
that you bestow in the sight of all,
on those who take refuge in you.
In the shelter of your presence you hide them
from all human intrigues;
you keep them safe in your dwelling
from accusing tongues.
Praise be to the LORD,
for he showed me the wonders of his love
when I was in a city under siege.
In my alarm I said,
“I am cut off from your sight!”
Yet you heard my cry for mercy
when I called to you for help.
Love the LORD, all his faithful people!
The LORD preserves those who are true to him,
but the proud he pays back in full.
Be strong and take heart,
all you who hope in the LORD.
And another Psalm of Trust seems appropriate for Easter. Peter quoted Psalm 16 in his Pentecost sermon of Acts 2, explaining that death could not keep its hold on Christ. Let’s look at that entire Psalm.
Psalm 16–
Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.
LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
I will praise the LORD who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
There – I don’t know about you, but those words help me refocus in troubled times.
In fact, I changed my mind. Let me try writing my own very short Psalm of Trust after all. Because whatever happens, I want to remember that God is my refuge.
A Psalm of Trust for Easter
Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed!
Christ is the King of kings
and Lord of lords,
who shall reign for ever and ever.
Hallelujah!
Lord, I was reminded today
that Mary’s mind couldn’t process the empty tomb
until you said her name.
The Resurrection was the great reversal,
turning what seemed like utter defeat
into triumph and joy.
And you, Resurrected Christ,
Lord of life,
are our refuge and strength.
Our circumstances seem bad,
the news seems dire,
our livelihoods aren’t secure,
the future feels ominous,
and it’s hard to know where to turn
and what to do.
But Lord God, may we remember
that you are our refuge.
May we look to follow Christ,
loving our neighbors
and being kind to the least of these.
And may we remember that even the grave is not the end of the story,
for you are the Resurrection and the Life.