THE ROCK WHO HEARS!
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Opening Prayer
Father, with all that I am, I want to worship you today. Help me to please you in everything I say and do.
Read PSALM 28
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Psalm
Psalm 28
1 To you, LORD, I call; you are my Rock, do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who go down to the pit.
2 Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.
3 Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts.
4 Repay them for their deeds and for their evil work; repay them for what their hands have done and bring back on them what they deserve.
5 Because they have no regard for the deeds of the LORD and what his hands have done, he will tear them down and never build them up again.
6 Praise be to the LORD, for he has heard my cry for mercy.
7 The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
8 The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one.
9 Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.
Reflect
‘The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer … my rock, in whom I take refuge … He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior.’1
This psalm is full of pictures: two kinds of rock, the dangerous and immovable kind, and the listening, speaking, and providing safety kind. There are two kinds of people: those who listen to God and speak his truth, and those who don’t! When we say of someone, she/he is my rock, we usually mean they are strong, supportive, and safe—but if we say, ‘that person is just rock-like,’ we are more likely to mean that they don’t listen, they are immovable, etc. Rocks can be a barrier to our journey, a huge, impenetrable wall we can’t get over or through, or they can be a solid path we can safely walk along.
David is aware of those for whom the Rock is a barrier, or a strong force that will drag them away. He is also aware of the Rock who speaks, who cares, who provides security, defense, strength, and help; the Rock who is also a caring shepherd—David is never afraid of a mixed metaphor!
This morning, I sat down to write this reflection, and my computer was dead. It wasn’t the fuse that was gone; everything else on the same circuit was working. It wasn’t the battery in the keyboard or the mouse; it just hadn’t been turned off for some reason; it was absolutely refusing to respond to me! I was getting desperate. Then I checked all the various connections again and pressed harder on the cord going into the back, and it clicked! I was reconnected to the power, and the Rock did speak. Somehow, I was able to enter the psalm with renewed feeling and understanding! When I am not hearing God, it might just be me who has caused the link to be lost!
Closing prayer
Thank you, God, for giving us psalms that express just how we feel and think in different situations. Help me listen to you and recognize when you are speaking to me.
1 2 Sam 22:2, 3.
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