GATHERING
THE CALL | Mark 4:30–32 [ESV]
“With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
PRAYER | Valley of Vision Journeying On
Lord of the cloud and fire,
I am a stranger, with a stranger’s indifference; My hands hold a pilgrim’s staff, My march is Zionward, My eyes are toward the coming of the Lord, My heart is in thy hands without reserve.
Thou hast created it, redeemed it, renewed it, captured it, conquered it.
Keep from it every opposing foe, crush in it every rebel lust, mortify every treacherous passion, annihilate every earthborn desire.
All faculties of my being vibrate to thy touch; I love thee with soul, mind, body, strength, might, spirit, affection, will, desire, intellect, understanding.
Thou art the very perfection of all perfections; All intellect is derived from thee; My scanty rivulets flow from thy unfathomable fountain.
Compared with thee the sun is darkness, all beauty deformity, all wisdom folly, the best goodness faulty.
Thou art worthy of an adoration greater than my dull heart can yield; Invigorate my love that it may rise worthily to thee, tightly entwine itself round thee, be allured by thee.
Then shall my walk be endless praise.
MEDITATION | Jeremiah 29:4–7 [ESV]
“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.
SING: Gloria Patri
Glory be to the Father
And to the Son and to the Holy Ghost
As it was in the beginning
Is now and ever shall be world without end
Amen Amen
WORD
Read Psalm 63
2nd Reading: John 7:37-39
(Ps 63:1) You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land where there is no water.
It feels a little strange to say that I have a favorite psalm. Sort of the way a parent does not want to talk about a favorite child. But, truth be told, this is my favorite psalm. It is short and sweet and it stirs my heart toward worship.
Psalm 63 begins with several statements about David’s desire for a deeper relational experience with God. The psalm is situated with regard to David’s time in the wilderness of Judah. But is is not food, water, or the comforts of home that David longs for. Instead David longs to experience God. “My soul thirsts for you..”
I should be clear in saying that this is not my favorite psalm because I always feel this way about God. In fact, it is the exact opposite. I find this psalm to be “aspirational.” It is how I should feel about God. It is how I would feel if my heart desires were properly oriented. The psalm challenges my affections and stirs me up to long for something more.
In addition to the intensity of David’s desire to know and experience God, several related themes emerge.
- The presence of God is associated with the sanctuary of God. (vs.2) First in the tabernacle, then in the temple which David’s son Solomon would build, God chose to reveal himself through the sanctuary. In the NT, the Gospel of John identifies Jesus with the tabernacle. He was the eternal Son of God who came to dwell among us in human flesh (Jn 1:14.)
- Unlike other things that we desire, God does not leave us empty when we seek him. Verse 5 says, “My soul shall be satisfied.” This is an encouragement for us to seek him.
- David expresses his intimate connection with God in evocative images. In verse 7 he rejoices while within the shadow of God’s wings, and follows close behind God.
- Finally, David’s cries of praise to God are not made from the comforts of the palace or an otherwise easy life. Rather, he is in the “wilderness.” Presumably he is on the run from powerful enemies who “seek his life (vs. 9-11.)” Whatever our situation, knowing and serving and enjoying God is our greatest purpose. (Matt Koerber)
ABIDING
The Sacred Harp singing tradition is a form of Christian worship that uses a particular kind of music theory. It emerged as the New World blended poor immigrant and slave cultures together. Originally created to teach illiterate people to read music in New England, it quickly spread across the country and took deep roots in the South. Musically, it breaks a lot of “rules” in traditional Western theory, but it follows the “rule” of the ear. Instead of typical music notation, Sacred Hard uses shape-notes that are easily recognizable and reflect the melodic intuitions of folk music. Over time, worshipers would gather in a square and sing toward one another with the goal to sing as loudly as possible. As one worshiper explained in this documentary, “If you can hear your neighbor singing, you’re not singing loud enough!” Sacred Harp is a rich tradition of worship and has greatly influenced modern hymnody with writers like Isaac Watts and Joseph Hart. Our first setting of Psalm 126 uses the tune of Wayfaring Stranger, which captures the sojourning spirit of not just Psalm 126, but all the Psalms of Ascents as well. Here is a performance of the traditional setting of Wayfaring Stranger. At a traditional singing event, singers use a version of solfege to frame the song before singing the lyrics.
SING
- Psalm 126 | Wayfarer [demo] [chord sheet]
- Psalm 126 [recording] [sheet music]
THURSDAY-MEMORIZE | Psalm 126
– Spend time memorizing the words of the Psalm as best you can –
SENDING
LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever,
Amen.
Matthew 9:37–38 [ESV]
Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”