The rains have come

Dan Harper March 10, 2020 0 0

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Psalm 27 (NRSVA)

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
    of whom shall I be afraid?

2 When evildoers assail me
    to devour my flesh—
my adversaries and foes—
    they shall stumble and fall.

3 Though an army encamp against me,
    my heart shall not fear;
though war rise up against me,
    yet I will be confident.

4 One thing I asked of the Lord,
    that will I seek after:
to live in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the Lord,
    and to inquire in his temple.

5 For he will hide me in his shelter
    in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
    he will set me high on a rock.

6 Now my head is lifted up
    above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
    sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.

7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud,
    be gracious to me and answer me!
8 ‘Come,’ my heart says, ‘seek his face!’
    Your face, Lord, do I seek.
9     Do not hide your face from me.

Do not turn your servant away in anger,
    you who have been my help.
Do not cast me off, do not forsake me,
    O God of my salvation!
10 If my father and mother forsake me,
    the Lord will take me up.

11 Teach me your way, O Lord,
    and lead me on a level path
    because of my enemies.
12 Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries,
    for false witnesses have risen against me,
    and they are breathing out violence.

13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage;
    wait for the Lord!

When was the last time you were soaked to the skin? Caught in the rain to the point that your underpants could be rung out! Even with the most hi-tech walking kit sometimes the wind and rain conspire to get you wet in places you don’t want to talk about in church. These storms can last moments, hours or days, and when faced with them a bothy tucked away in the mountains is a shelter more revelled in than any other.

Get inside; get the fire lit and the kettle on. If you are lucky someone has beaten you to it and the smoke buffeted from the chimney will cheer you on your last few steps.

Sometimes you will end up in a bothy for lunch and the storm will continue to the point you stay the night, not wanting to head back out into all the weather can throw at you. So there you stay, in the shelter, knowing that sometimes the best way to continue your journey is to hunker down and weather the storm.

The psalmist is writing in the face of a storm, as is often the case, and these storms speak into the metaphorical bad weather of our own lives. It is easy to think the only way to continue a journey of faith is keep trudging on, but sometimes the best thing is to hunker down with God and wait, weather the storm and be ready to head on in more clement weather.

PRAYER:

God,
Help me be prepared to hunker down with you.
Help me to look to you in faith when I’m soaked to the skin and need time to dry out.  
God,
Help me keep on the path, even if I have to pause for a while, sure that you are our shelter in the storm. 
Amen.