Psalm 111 (B)

Psalm 111

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
His praise endures forever. (Psalm 111:10 NRSV)

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, courage to change the thinks I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Click on the link for the Psalm above for the text or listen to Psalm 111:

Reflection:

“Its [Psalm 111] words of celebration preface the human response to YHWH called for in Psalm 112, and the wisdom words at the end of Psalm 111 provide the link to move the reader or hearer from celebration to action.” W p. 113 The last verse of Psalm 111 move the reader or hearer from celebration to action. In Psalm 112, the righteous will act as a light in the darkness and can be described as acting: graciously, generously, mercifully, and as people who conduct their affairs with justice. These attributes and actions are the fruit of wisdom.

Wisdom is more than being an intellectual; it is about being compassionate. Wisdom is knowledge that is applied lovingly. God is the source of wisdom, truth, and love. And when we approach God with awe, reverence, and worship, we come away changed, and maybe a little wiser. And we use this wisdom to treat ourselves and our neighbors graciously, generously, and lovingly.

Lately, I have found myself praying the serenity prayer to ask for God’s wisdom. The Serenity Prayer is attributed to Reinhold Niebuhr and was adopted by Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) and other 12 step groups. The short version is as follows: God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Prayer:

The Lord’s Prayer is about the amount of time you need for hand scrubbing 😉

Breath Prayer: I am including breath prayers because this is the practice that I engage in most often. Sometimes, I simply manage my breathing as I would when I was singing as a warmup and strengthening exercise. This practice helps me to feel centered, strong, and connected with myself and the divine. Sometimes, I add words or intentions for the inhalation and exhalation.

Nicole Cardoza’s Guided Meditation For Anxiety
Try this short meditation, created by Yoga Foster and Reclamation Ventures founder Nicole Cardoza, the next time you feel yourself getting overwhelmed, stressed, or anxious. Read in Yoga Journal.

Mr. Roger’s “Taking a breath” This one is short, but Mr. Roger’s voice is calming for me (and many Pittsburghers) and even his virtual presence can summon childhood memories of calmness and safety.

Let us pray:

One way to think about breath prayer is that whatever is exhaled other people will inhale. So, sometimes we might inhale and exhale the same idea with the hope that what we receive from God, we can share with others. For example, you may imagine receiving God’s steadfast love while praying that others are receiving God’s steadfast love.

Another way to think about breath prayer is to pick something you would like to receive for your inhalation and something you would like to release for your exhalation. The idea is to keep it simple, so I encourage you to simply find one word for each inhale and one word for each exhale. That simple prayer could be something like this: God fill me with your Holy spirit. I receive your wisdom and release my control.

Or you may want to use a short phrase: God grant me wisdom to do your will.

Ok, everyone take a deep breath. Breath in. Breath out. Breath in. Breath out. Repeat as needed.

Sources and notes:

“True knowledge – wisdom – is not grounded in ourselves but in God, and it involves the embrace of God’s commitments and values. Thus wisdom will take concrete shape in righteousness, grace, and mercy (see vv. 3-4), and those who fear the Lord (Ps 112:1), therefore, will be “gracious, merciful, and righteous” (Ps 112:4)…” NIB p. 621

“The word translated “merciful” derives from the noun [Hebrew I don’t have the font for], whose literal meaning is “womb”. References to God’s [Hebrew I don’t have the font for], God’s “womb-love,” occurs no fewer than twenty times in the book of Psalms.” W pp. 111-112

“Thus it is a celebration of the foundational work of YHWH on behalf of the people of Israel. Its words of celebration preface the human response to YHWH called for in Psalm 112, and the wisdom words at the end of Psalm 111 provide the link to move the reader or hearer from celebration to action.” W p. 113

WBC Allen, Leslie C. 1983. Word Biblical Commentary: Psalms 101-150. Vol. 21. Waco, TX: Word Books, Publisher.

Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. 1974. Psalms: The Prayer Book of the Bible. 8th ed. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Press.

Brueggemann, Walter. 2007. Praying the Psalms: Engaging Scripture and the Life of the Spirit. 2nd ed. Eugene, OR: Cascade.

Brueggemann Brueggemann, Walter. 2014. From Whom No Secrets Are Hid: Introducing the Psalms. Edited by Brent A. Strawn. 1st ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.

WBC Craigie, Peter C. 1983. Psalms 1-50–Word Biblical Commentary. Vol. 19. Waco, TX: Word Books.

Creach, Jerome Frederick Davis. 1998. Psalms: Interpretation Bible Studies. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.

W de Claisse-Walford, Nancy L. WISDOM COMMENTARY: Psalms Bks. 4-5. Edited by Barbara E. Reid. Vol. 22. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2020.

W Hopkins, Denise Dombkowski. WISDOM COMMENTARY: Psalms Bks. 2-3. Edited by Barbara E. Reid. Vol. 21. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2016.

NIB Keck, Leander E. 2015. The New Interpreters Bible Commentary. Vol. 3. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.

Mays Mays, James Luther. 1994. Psalms. Louisville, KY: John Knox Press.

McCann, J. C., & Howell, J. C. 2001. Preaching the Psalms. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.

Miller Miller, Patrick D. 1986. Interpreting the Psalms. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press.

Schlimm Schlimm, Matthew Richard. 2018. 70 Hebrew Words Every Christian Should Know. Nashville, TN: Abington Press.

Spong Spong, M. (Ed.). (2020). The words of her mouth: Psalms for the struggle. Cleveland, OH: The Pilgrim Press.

WBC Tate, Marvin E. 1990. Word Biblical Commentary: Psalms 51-100. Edited by David Allan. Hubbard and Glenn W. Barker. Vol. 20. Waco, TX: Word.

OTL Weiser, Artur. 1998. Old Testament Library: Psalms. Translated by Herbert Hartwell. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Manchester University Press.

I began writing Psalm reflections during Lent of 2020 shortly after we decided to close the church building, work from home, and worship via zoom. Many churches use the revised common lectionary that rotates scripture on a three-year cycle (A, B, and C). Starting in Advent 2019, Third Church decided to worship with the texts from Year D, which is still not circulated as are years A, B, and C. Year D was created with the goal of including scriptures that were left out or not used as frequently as others. Reflections exploring the Psalms in year D. While we were using Year D, most other lectionary followers were using Year A. Now that we are rejoining those who use the lectionary, we are on Year B. This we hope will keep all of us planning and preparing worship on the same page.

I use the Vanderbilt Divinity Library’s resource for lectionary readings to make text selections when I’m following the Revised Common Lectionary.