Psalm 134
Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord
who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
and praise the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion,
he who is the Maker of heaven and earth.
Should we go anywhere? That's a question that is echoing through many people's minds right now. Is it safe to go to the grocery store? Can we eat out or go to the movies? Should we visit with friends? The young and healthy among us worry about being a vehicle for the COVID-19 virus to reach more vulnerable people. Those who are older or more at risk may worry for their own safety. Should we go anywhere?
I propose that we go on a journey together these next couple of weeks. Not a journey outward but a journey upward and inward-- a journey that will bring us closer to God. For the next few weeks, I'll be providing these weekday devotions taken from Psalms 120-134. These psalms are a special collection within the Psalter known collectively as the 'Psalms of Ascent.' They were psalms that the Israelites were meant to sing as they made their pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Jesus likely heard these psalms as he and his parents made their pilgrimage to Jerusalem the year he turned 12. Perhaps it was their words that inspired him to seek out his Father's house. Later, Jesus and his disciples likely sang or chanted these psalms as they made their own journey to Jerusalem for the passover celebration-- A fateful week that we will mark together between Palm Sunday and Easter.
This collection is called the Psalms of Ascent because pilgrims would have to ascend Mt. Zion on steps to reach the Temple to worship. That is the literal ascent. But these are also psalms about a spiritual ascent: a journey all pilgrims go on who wish to draw nearer to God.
Should we go anywhere? Listen to guides you trust about what journeys you make out of your house.
Should we go anywhere? Yes. In our times of prayer and Bible Study these next few weeks, we can caravan together. Imagine all of us in our robes with our livestock... bread and water in our sacks... getting ready to march off together each morning from the place where we camped the night before. Husbands leading the way, women assisting the elderly, children giggling as they chase each other in circles... An elder stands to bless the caravan before we leave. He chants a psalm, says a few words, and prays a prayer. Then we all begin, step by step, breath by breath, moving together as we see the sun rise over a distant mountain...
That is Mount Zion. The Mountain of the Lord. The one our feet and souls are oriented toward. The one whose steps lead up to the House of God, where the King of Glory waits to greet his children...
Should we go anywhere?
Lord, Bless us on this journey we take together. Though these times are scary and uncertain, we know that you are yet King and are watching over us. As we navigate a new terrain, we ask that you go before us behind us and beside us. That you bind us together though we are apart: One caravan making its way to you. Amen.
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