June 2025 – Psalms 90-106
The Psalms are songs for the journey. To paraphrase a well-known ad: ‘A psalm a day helps you work, rest and pray.’ Let’s be nourished with the humility, the honesty, and the heartfelt faith of the psalmists, and may we find a voice to draw near to God each day.
Tuesday 1st July – Psalm 104:10-18 ‘The land is satisfied’
After the deluge of water referred to in yesterday’s verses, today’s verses show the benefits of water in our world: springs which ‘flow between the mountains’ (v10), watering the fields (v11), quenching the thirst of the animals (v11), and cultivating crops for animals and people (v14).
I’m conscious as I write this that the UK has just had the driest spring for 50 years, and the sixth driest in the last 200. In contrast, an 18-month period from 2023-2024 was the wettest on record in the UK. In other words, today we might well be nodding our heads vigorously at the image of water pouring into the ravines – whereas last September, or during the winter of 2023-24, we would have found the picture much harder to appreciate!
Yet it’s worth reminding ourselves that much of Israel faced a yearly battle to get enough water – as indeed do many parts of our world. There is a wonderful African song which is called: ‘Rain, rain, beautiful rain.’ This year excepted, it’s hard for many of us Brits to understand why anyone would write such a song. But it’s in this context that the psalmist is so excited about God’s provision of enough water. Without water, we simply cannot live.
It’s no surprise, then, that water is presented as one of the greatest of God’s gifts, one which blesses all of his creation. It is through water that ‘the land is satisfied’ and teems with life. Through it, humans are blessed with other essentials, too: bread, oil and (dare I say it) wine which ‘gladdens our hearts’ (v15).
So today, let’s focus on water – and perhaps allow it to inform our prayers in various ways: first, to renew our thankfulness for the ease of access we have to it – much of the world would love to live somewhere with the amount of rainfall we usually have in an average year; second to pray for those negatively affected by too much water or too little, especially those victims of flooding and drought; third, to pray for health and renewal of all creation which relies on water. This psalm describes so many glories of the natural world, and we humans remain those primarily tasked by God with looking after it.
And as we do this, may the Lord also fill our hearts with his living water, ‘a spring welling up to eternal life.’
Monday 30th June – Psalm 104:1-9 ‘Clothed with splendour’
The lockdowns of 2020 and 2021, for all their challenges, also birthed plenty of new gifts. Many of us used the confines of the season to learn a new skill. For my daughter, that meant making her own clothes. She began with simple tops; then progressed to creating her own school shirts, stitching together two different fabrics – and pleased to reuse some of my old work shirts, which no longer see the light of day! – and finally graduated to making dresses. She is also discovering her own style, which I think is admirable. When social events began again, she was certainly splendidly clothed!
The first part of today’s psalm takes the clothing analogy and applies it to God. How do we describe the greatness of the Lord? Often words fail us, and therefore very often the writers of the psalms – as we have noted before – use human images to help us picture the awesome majesty of the Almighty. So, here in verse 1: ‘Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendour and majesty.’
Whilst God has glory within himself, it can be helpful to picture God’s attributes as things we can see or touch. Verses 2-9 describe two types of clothing, two facets of the glory of God. First, light: ‘The Lord wraps himself in light as with a garment.’ (v2)
As days lengthen through spring each year, we are blessed with the joy of ever greater amounts of light. For many of us, this lifts our spirits – and for the psalmist, they let a similar idea – that of heavenly light – point them back to God. The heavens are stretched out like a tent (v2), as God makes the clouds his chariot (v3). The glorious light of the sky points us towards an even more glorious God.
Similarly, water is the other form of clothing we see in this psalm, only this time it is a garment for God’s world. ‘You covered it with the watery depths as with a garment.’ (v6) Whilst the image is perhaps more unsettling, it reminds us that the powerful fundamental forces of nature are in God’s hands. To imagine God wrapped in light, as the earth is wrapped in water, is a picture of majesty and magnificence. We gaze in awe at the power and greatness of God.
Global crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic make many of us feel small. But sometimes it’s not a bad thing to feel small, if we know where to look for the One who is huge. That would be God. The world always faces major challenges. But we worship an even bigger God – a great, big God, in the words of the famous children’s song. A God wrapped in light: light enough for the darkness of the world, even the darkness within our own lives.
Lord my God, you are very great. Help me to find comfort in your greatness. I feel small in the face of all that life throws at me at present. But you are glorious, and I pray for your light to shine into my life again today. Amen.
Saturday 28th June – Psalm 103 (iii) ‘Not as we deserve’
On 12th December 2024, one of outgoing President Biden’s last acts was to grant presidential pardons to 39 people. The list makes interesting reading. Whilst some are politically motivated, the majority take into account evidence of life-change or subsequent good works. A number have raised significant amounts for charity, or re-trained after serving time in prison.
Whatever we think of any particular president (and each one traditionally issues pardons at the end of their term of office), there is still something powerful about the act of forgiveness enacted through a pardon. All these individuals had received, or were about to receive, the punishment their sins deserved – and then were shown mercy.
This goes to the heart of our text for today, and reminds us of a deep but glorious biblical truth about our relationship with God. All of us have fallen short of the life we were designed to have. All of us deserve the consequences for that. But God, in his great love and mercy, ‘does not treat us as our sins deserve, or repay us according to our iniquities’ (v10).
In fact, the psalmist goes further – declaring in one of the great texts of the Old Testament: ‘For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.’ (v11-12)
It is as if, the psalmist says, God has picked up our sins, flown across the Atlantic and buried the whole lot of them in the Nevada Desert. That’s how far God has taken our sin away.
God compassion is rooted in both our status as his children (v13) and our fragility as mortal beings (v14-16). God forgives because he is our perfect, eternal Father. We don’t need to earn it: we just have to receive it.
So today, as God’s beloved children, let’s remember what we have been forgiven. Let’s receive the gift of God’s new life, slowly transforming us from the inside out. And may these glorious truths cause praise to rise on our lips, as it does for psalmist at the end of this psalm:
Praise the Lord, all his works, everywhere in his dominion. Praise the Lord, O my soul!
Friday 27th June – Psalm 103 (ii) ‘Crowns you with love’
‘Heavy is the head that wears the crown.’ This quote (or rather slight misquote!) from Shakespeare’s Henry IV is a great observation about the challenges of leadership and responsibility. Such things weigh upon us. Indeed, a literal crown for most monarchs is usually a heavy object: the King Edward Crown of King Charles III weighs nearly 5lbs! Try wearing that for a long ceremonial occasion. The King might well have neck muscles like those on a Formula 1 racing driver.
But there is a crown which does not weigh heavy. It is the crown mentioned here in verse 4: the crown of God’s love and compassion. What a beautiful phrase this is! God does not just offer us, or give us, these things: he crowns us with them.
The image suggests that these things are of great value – both to the giver and also to the wearer. To wear a crown is be bestowed with great worth. And so we are to God: the Lord thinks the world of us. He made no-one else like us. We bear his image. We are of infinite worth to him. So yes, we can rightly describe God’s love and compassion as a crown – just let that thought sink in for a moment, and warm your heart.
But let us also remember that to give us this crown, God also wore one while on earth. The only crown God ever wore was one of thorns: the ultimate act of self-giving love. A crown which weighed little in grams but weighed everything in cost. When God crowns us, let us never forget what crown God kept for himself.
We may never get to wear a physical crown. But today, let us rejoice that we wear a spiritual one. One given to us at such a cost: the crown of God’s love and compassion. And may that crown be worn not just in our heads, but also in our hearts.
Gracious God, thank you that I am worth everything to you. I gladly receive your crown of love. Fill me with your compassion, too, that I might also pass that on to others. Bless the Lord, my soul. Amen.
Thursday 26th June – Psalm 103 ‘All my inmost being’
‘Bless the Lord, my soul!’ This joyful beginning to one of the most famous psalms is both much loved and also sometimes causes a little head scratching: surely God blesses us, and not the other way round? The fact that most modern translations render the word as ‘praise’ is a sure sign that this idea troubles people. So, let’s begin with a short explanation as to why we can bless God as well as rejoice that God blesses us: ‘When the Lord blesses us, he reviews our needs and responds to them; when we bless the Lord, we review his excellencies and respond to them.’ (J.A. Motyer)
In other words, it is not an equivalent action: to bless is to bestow God’s goodness on someone or something: so when we do that to God, we are not bestowing anything he doesn’t already have! In that sense it is fair to translate it as ‘praise’: however, it’s worth keeping the original meaning as it reminds us that we are to be people of blessing. This goes to the heart of God’s promise to Abraham way back in Genesis 12: whenever we ‘bless’ God (and others) we fulfil that wonderful promise.
So let’s bless! And let’s also observe today the true source of this blessing on our part: ‘all my inmost being’ (v1). This throwaway phrase takes on profound importance as the bible develops, culminating in Jesus’ own teaching. In essence: to praise God with our lips and our lives requires us to start with our hearts and minds. It is the inner life which fuels the outward action.
Here, King David feeds his mind by reminding himself in verses 3-5 of all the reasons he has to praise God: a God who forgives and heals, of love and compassion, who satisfies and renews.
This list is both uplifting and unsettling. Many will ask: why does David say that God heals all of our diseases when he patently does not? There is much debate over how to explain this: some try and change the meaning of ‘all’ to ‘all kinds of’ or to spiritualise the word ‘disease’ so that it might mean something other than its plain meaning. Both explanations are inadequate.
Instead, let’s observe first that these psalms are poems and songs written in a culture which likes to emphasise things through hyperbole. When Katrina sings that she’s walking on sunshine, we don’t assume that she has literally levitated on a warm day. It’s a powerful phrase which conveys an inner truth.
That’s a good place to start; but then, let’s go further and rely on the vital principle that we let scripture interpret itself. So when we see a set of declarations here, what else does the bible about these things? In this case, Scripture consistently affirms that in Christ God forgives every sin; that God does satisfy every godly desire, though not always as we expect; and certainly that God is love in the core of his being. We can accept these wonderful phrases of David literally. Healing is more complicated: but what we can affirm is that in the new creation everything (and everyone) will be healed. Ultimately, this phrase is equally true, but its meaning is only realised at a later point.
As we close, let’s call to mind those we love who have died ‘in the faith’, and let’s take comfort and hope that this word is gloriously true for them: that now they are fully healed and with our Lord in glory. And may God stir our hearts afresh today, that with ‘all our inmost being’ we too can bless God’s holy name. Amen.
Wednesday 25th June – Psalm 102 (ii) ‘The Lord will rebuild’
We live in a season of what appears to be general decline. And if you read the newspapers, or some other form of media, you’ll often find this question asked: how will we recover? What will unlock a new period of growth and renewal? You may or may not feel optimistic about that, though you will probably assume that it is the job of national governments and international agencies to do these things.
But they’re only part of the answer. There are deeper questions to ask: about wellbeing, about pain, about loss, about damage to relationships at different levels; and also (positively) about the increased hunger for God, for community, for meaning. Who will rebuild these?
This Psalm is worth a second look, for all kinds of reasons. Its honest lament is probably one we could offer most days at present, and that would be enough in itself, although you might feel a bit short-changed if my reflection for today was: ‘read yesterday’s!’
Instead, let’s direct our attention to this important question which the psalm addresses: who will rebuild our spiritual and emotional wellbeing? Who will bind up our wounds? Who will bless the growth of the kingdom and community? The answer is clear: ‘the Lord will rebuild’ (v16).
Zion is biblical shorthand for the visible kingdom of God on earth. When everything seems hopeless or broken, God is still at work: God rebuilds; God responds (v17); God releases (v20); God remains (v27). God, and only God, can do this deeper work of rebuilding.
The journey of secular recovery is long, uneven and far from guaranteed. There will be failures and frustrations. Kingdom work, too, is costly. But the difference is the architect. Our confidence is that the Lord will rebuild. And our Lord calls us to partner with him in this work – in prayer, and, in time, through action. Governments come and go: but the Lord remains the same. (v27)
Today, let’s call on our eternal God to do this work of rebuilding: in our lives; our churches; our communities; our nation; our world. It is, and will be, challenging: but we worship a great big God.
Lord of all the earth, life is hard. But you are good. Do your work of rebuilding, I pray: in me… in those around me… and in my community…. Appear in your glory in our fractured world, that, in time, all might assemble to worship you. Amen.
Tuesday 24th June – Psalm 102 ‘But you, Lord…’
This reflection was first written during the 2021 lockdown – however with all the bad news in the world at the moment, perhaps this current season is not so very different…
This is a season of lament. Everywhere I go (which isn’t far at the moment, obviously), everyone I talk to, the sense is the same: a profound sadness and weariness. For some, it’s the acute grief of loss of someone close to them. For others, it’s other forms of loss: loss of contact, of pleasurable activities, of variety in life, of hope that things will get better anytime soon. But, with rare exceptions, for pretty much all of us: it is a season of loss. And therefore a season of lament.
In good times, we avoid psalms like today’s one. Too gloomy, too melodramatic: ‘my bones burn… reduced to skin and bones… like an owl among the ruins… thrown aside.’
But these are not psalms for the good times. We need language for the bad times too. For seasons like this. The great Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann once said that his image of the psalmist was of ‘a little old man shaking his fist at God.’ And the fact that we can shake our fist, that we can pour out our cry, that we can describe our sadness and our grief and maybe even our anger at God, is a great comfort. God is not insecure. God can take it – like a parent who holds their distraught child even as the child beats their fists against the parent’s chest.
And like all outpourings of grief, eventually the tears dry up and we are emptied. It’s what comes next that is significant. Sadly, for some people, there is nowhere else to turn, hope is limited entirely by human factors. But for the psalmist, verse 11 is followed by the great affirmation of verse 12: ‘But you, Lord, sit enthroned for ever.’
The world lets us down – repeatedly. But God isn’t going anywhere. God is still on his throne. And God’s character doesn’t change: ‘You will arise and have compassion.’ (v13) That’s a promise for us, too, and not just the people of the psalmist’s day.
It’s not a magic wand. But it helps us both to look down and to look up. To look down at the sure foundation beneath our feet. To look up to God’s throne, and know that there is something – Someone – greater than ourselves, in whose shadow we can find rest.
So if you resonate with this psalm today, don’t be afraid to pour out your lament to God. And then read v12 and 13, and ask God to fix your gaze where you might find hope: in the Lord of heaven and earth. Amen.
Monday 23rd June – Psalm 101 ‘Eyes on the faithful’
‘I’ve got my eye on you!’ That’s what my old vicar said to me a year or so after I’d joined the church. I was in my late 20s and had started helping out in various ways. I didn’t think much about what he said at the time, though looking back maybe he saw something about my future which I didn’t pursue actively for some years yet. I’m pretty sure he wasn’t worried about his job!
But the idea of ‘keeping an eye on’ something is a familiar phrase to us. We use it in lots of ways – it can denote positive interest or (negative) suspicion. What do you keep an eye on? Breaking news, the weather, some shares you own, your neighbour’s frisky dog, the hairline crack in your wall?
The truth is we keep our eyes on lots of things. Today, though, King David encourages us to keep our eyes on something – or someone – else. ‘My eyes,’ he says, ‘will be on the faithful in the land.’ (v6)
This is a less well-known psalm, and unusually focuses much more on the lifestyle of the psalmist than the greatness of God – though there is praise as well, and to a large degree the two are linked in this psalm. David’s desire is to lead a holy life, and to promote holiness within his people too. So he wants nothing to do with wickedness (vv3-4) but rather to lead a blameless life, which welcomes the presence of God (v2).
As part of this ‘holy culture’ he also directs his attention to those who, like him, want to do God’s will. Those are the people he not only wants to hang out with, but who will themselves ‘minister to him’ (v6).
It’s a useful reminder that we walk this journey of faith together. As we long to grow in our relationship with God, so we find encouragement and strength from doing so with others who want the same. Let’s receive the words of this psalm as an encouragement to turn our eyes towards our faithful brothers and sisters, finding creative ways to ‘dwell’ with them and minister to each other.
That might be a phone call, or a time spent in prayer for particular people, or perhaps both. But, however we do it, let’s rejoice that we walk together, under God. Let’s keep our eyes on those who are part of our family of faith, that God, too, might come to us.
Thank you Lord, for the family of the church. Thank you for all those who long to walk in step with you. Help us to keep our eyes on each other, that we might minister your love, and dwell as your people wherever you have put us. Amen.
Saturday 21st June – Psalm 100 ‘Through all generations’
We live in a culture which focuses largely on the now. ‘The past is a foreign country,’ and the future is a crystal ball. Only the present matters.
Whilst we inevitably have to live in the here and now, we also lose so much if we get caught up with this attitude. And not just in practical terms: ‘those who forget the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them,’ as the old saying goes. It is a spiritual problem, too. One of the historic strengths of Jewish culture – and many other cultures, too – is the sense of ancestry, of a spiritual past. Time and again, God’s people are encouraged to remember the past, what God has done throughout history.
This sense of collective remembrance has a spiritual purpose. It reminded them – and us – of who God is. The actions defined the character. How do we know that God is loving, or good, or faithful? Look at what He’s done. Creation, covenant, and then miraculous rescue, time and again. And this is before we even get to Jesus! As we honour the past, so we see God’s faithfulness writ large.
It applies at a small scale too. We will have personal stories that form part of our past, as well as the famous stories of the heroes of the faith. Never forget them. Take time occasionally to remember them, to declare them. Perhaps today might be a moment to do so for a few minutes.
As we reflect on this short but wonderful psalm, it feels like its ending is really the beginning. This is our bedrock, as it was for God’s people thousands of years ago when this psalm was written: ‘The Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.’ (v5)
This is why we can be encouraged to ‘shout for joy’ (v1), to relate to God as our Good Shepherd (v3), to spend time in his presence (v4).
God has been faithful. He is faithful. He will be faithful. May that make us glad today. Amen.
Friday 20th June – Psalm 99 ‘Between the cherubim’
When I was a student one of the pictures I had on my wall was part of a famous painting by Raphael (The Sistine Madonna) depicting two small angels looking up at Mary. You’ll probably recognise the image. I studied Raphael, and always found the nonchalance of these two cherubs charming, and perhaps slightly subversive.
But there’s a problem with this kind of image. Take the word ‘cherub’ and this is usually the kind of image we think of: lovable, childlike, dare I say it ‘cute’. So, when we read in today’s passage that God sits ‘enthroned between the cherubim’ (v1) – plural of cherub – we might imagine a scene which pictures God as a Sunday School teacher on a plastic chair surrounded by lots of adoring (or bored) young children on a mat. A vision which seems to jar with the first line of the verse, too: that this God, surrounded by all his cherubs, is so majestic that the nations ought to tremble. We don’t tend to employ Sunday School teachers like that anymore – though maybe we did once!
The underlying issue here is that we’ve got our image of cherubs rather wrong. Although there is a long-held Jewish tradition that depicts cherubs with children’s faces, the rest of them is not so, well, cherubic. Cherubs are magnificent, awe-inspiring creatures. They appear as divine guards in Genesis 3:24 when Adam and Eve have been banished from the Garden of Eden.
Their ‘guarding’ role is also at the heart of God’s relationship with his people: in the Most Holy Place a pair of cherubim flanks the ark of the covenant: one each side, each 15 feet high with a 15-foot wingspan, touching in the middle. And between them, the ark of the covenant: holding the tablets with the Ten Commandments, and with the atonement cover on top, where, once a year, the High Priest sprinkled the sacrificial blood, which atoned for the sins of the people.
So, the description that God sits ‘enthroned between the cherubim’ is one of majesty and mercy. It reminds us of God’s awesome holiness – so holy that, under the Law, only one person once a year could enter his presence, and even then only when the room was filled with the smoke of incense.
But also merciful: the place ‘between the cherubim’ became known as The Mercy Seat – the place where this majestic, holy God lovingly forgave our sin and restored us to his presence.
The place between the cherubim is the place where God met with the world on earth, in majesty and mercy. No wonder, then, that this is one of the ‘awe-some’ psalms, where our response to this glorious God is reverence and praise. It also explains why most of the rest of the psalm talks about God’s justice, and also the famous priests who ministered on God’s behalf.
The wonderful good news of Christ is that he was the perfect sacrifice at the mercy seat – for all people, for all time. We can all now have the freedom and confidence to approach the Most Holy Place of God’s presence (Hebrews 10:19). It’s easy to forget what a privilege this is: let’s claim that freedom again today, in Jesus’ name, and bring our lives and our prayers to God, the One who graciously answers (v6,v8).
Mighty God, who reigns forever, thank you that we have access to your glorious presence. We worship at your footstool today. Hear our prayers, especially….. Thank you that you answer. Help us to hold onto you. Amen.
Thursday 19th June – Psalm 98 ‘The work of salvation’
‘Shout to the Lord, all the earth, let us sing: power and majesty, praise to the King. Mountains bow down and the seas will roar at the sound of your name. I sing for joy at the work of your hands.’
Some of you will recognise those words as the chorus of one of the most popular worship songs of the last thirty years: ‘My Jesus, my Saviour.’ They’re taken directly from the verses of this psalm (v4, then vv7-8, then v1). And yet, these words were written hundreds of years before Jesus – which begs a useful question: what is ‘the work of God’s hands’ being referred to here? What ‘salvation is being made known’?
The psalm itself doesn’t tell us, but by and large whenever the Old Testament writers – especially the psalmists and prophets – refer to a saving act which God has already done, they’re usually referring to the miraculous rescue from Egypt, especially the two saving acts of Passover and the Crossing of the Red Sea. These were acts of literal salvation which decisively showed the Israelites that this God was their God, and they were his people.
The annual Passover celebration instituted from that moment reminded every generation of what God had done, and instructed the people to ‘make that salvation known’ (v2) afresh. They are called to remember, even as God remembers his love (v3).
But God’s saving work didn’t end at a point in history. God continued to rescue his people: in the time of Gideon, or David, or Hezekiah, and even after exile through the courage of Esther. God always remembers his love for his people.
And so we fast forward several centuries to a new Passover, a new Crossing from certain death to promised life – this time seen on a cross and then in an empty tomb. A new marvellous work of God, whose holy arm works salvation. Our God is the same: yesterday, today and forever. He continues to save, and Jesus is the true and greatest fulfilment of this psalm of praise. What was enacted for a particular people at the Red Sea was enacted for all people for all time at Calvary. There Jesus revealed God’s righteousness to the nations, so that all the ends of the earth might see the salvation of our God.
So it is quite right for that famous song to put Jesus at the heart of this psalm. And perhaps, if we know it, we too can sing the song in response. Let us sing a new song today, and be inspired to make his salvation known wherever God grants us the chance.
Loving Lord, I sing for joy at the work of your hands. Thank you that you always remember your love for me. Help me to abide in that love, and know your continuing saving work in my life. Amen.
Wednesday 18th June – Psalm 97 ‘Good foundations’
Some years ago we tried to buy a house in Manchester. My sister lives there and the idea was that once we’d bought it, she would have the security of long-term tenancy and (reasonably) nice landlords. However, when we had the survey done we discovered huge problems with subsidence. It was a Victorian end-of-terrace at the bottom of the slope and over the last century had been very gradually sinking. We sadly had to withdraw. Thankfully my sister is well housed elsewhere!
It was a harsh lesson in the importance of good foundations. Every good edifice rests on them. And in today’s psalm, we learn that God’s throne has vital foundations, too: they are ‘righteousness and justice’ (v2).
It’s easy to see these words as being ‘cold’ or abstract, but that would fall short of their original meaning. Biblical scholars have emphasised the relational meaning of both of these words. Here’s how one described each: ‘righteous action is action which conforms to the requirements of the relationship and in a more general sense promotes the peace and wellbeing of the community’; justice [is] the strongly ethical notion of action which is to be legally upheld because it is productive of communal wellbeing.’
That might sound like a mouthful, but it’s a valuable insight because it earths these foundational words in God’s relationship with us. When God is righteous, he is righteous for the good of his creation – including us; when God is just, he is just towards us.
Although we might instinctively have preferred something a bit cuddlier like ‘love and peace’ as the foundation of God’s throne, in fact what we get is something even better. God’s righteousness assures us that his love is perfectly directed. God’s justice is what secures our peace. As the old liberation slogan reminds us: ‘No peace without justice.’ Wonderfully, in knowing God we get both.
So, we can be thankful for these words! God’s throne is founded on two pillars which ultimately secure our wellbeing, too – righteousness and justice. The heavens proclaim it (v6); and we are called to model it too (vv10-12). We are called to live just and righteous lives because we are made in God’s image and therefore reflect our Maker’s intentions.
In our shifting world, God’s throne is secure. And we too can rest secure in these same unchanging qualities. May those qualities shine on us today (v11), producing joy and praise in our hearts and on our lips.
Just and righteous Lord, thank you that your foundations are secure. Help us to rest firm on those same foundations. Guard our lives today, and deliver us from evil. Shine on us, we pray, and in all the dark places of our community. Amen.
Tuesday 17th June – Psalm 96 (ii) ‘The splendour of holiness’
Holy people have this thing about them, don’t they? To come into the presence of someone who really walks closely with God – it’s a strangely affecting experience. I knew a person like that in London. He had a huge impact on my spiritual life: I must confess when I first met him I found him a bit scary – but I also felt drawn to him. There was just something magnetic – you might say splendid – about this person.
Others have testified to similar experiences when meeting other, more celebrated holy people. Great humility or love has something of awe about it. It was even said that the birds used to flock to St Francis of Assisi just to land on him! Who knows if that’s true – but it’s a lovely image, nonetheless.
Today, in this second reflection on Psalm 96, we are invited to ‘worship the Lord in the splendour of his holiness’ (v9). I’ve always found this phrase interesting, because in modern thinking, being holy is not thought of in that way at all. We tend to think of it negatively: being a killjoy, or disapproving, or self-righteous. Not a very splendid thing.
Of course, such parodies are way off the mark. And today’s psalm invites us to recapture the real essence of what it means to be holy – i.e. ‘set apart’. God’s perfection is magnificent. To be holy as God is holy means to be perfect in love, in wisdom, in joy, in patience, in gentleness, as well as in authority and justice. It is, quite literally, awe-some. It carries with it the weight of glory.
When we meet truly holy people today, we see something of that reflected light. It’s why saints in old paintings are always pictured with haloes – auras of light around their being. They reflect the glory of the One who is truly holy: God Almighty – perfect in power, in love and purity, as the old hymn would have it.
Amazingly, this is our calling too. Most of us feel that we haven’t got very far with that – and yet, because Christ dwells with us, in our hearts, so we too are being slowly transformed into his likeness ‘with ever-increasing glory’.
So today, let’s delight in the splendour of God’s holiness. Let’s pray for eyes to see its glory and magnificence, to bask in its reflected light. And, by God’s grace, may some of that light rub off on us too.
Loving and mighty Lord, you reign. You reign over the earth. You reign in my heart. You have all glory and strength, and I delight in your magnificent holiness. I offer you myself today, the only worthy offering I can make. Fill my heart anew with the light of your presence. Amen.
Monday 16th June – Psalm 96 ‘A new song’
Some years ago we took out a subscription to Amazon Prime’s ‘Music Unlimited’. Generally our family are always late to any technological party – I still mourn the demise of beacons on hillsides as the primary means of communicating news. Admittedly, many of my peers had already been users of a music subscription channel for 5 or 10 years. But by our standards, this was a revolution. Suddenly almost every song that had ever been published – 50 million or so pieces of music – was available for us to listen to: anytime, anywhere.
Today’s psalm begins by inviting us to ‘Sing to the Lord a new song.’ In today’s world, this could be considered straightforward when you’ve got 50 million songs to choose from – but how do we lift our hearts in faith to sing a new song every day? Surely words are limited? Feelings are finite? What does a ‘new song’ really mean?
Over the years, I’ve been fortunate to minister to some wonderful old saints – people who inspired me far more than I ever did them. And what’s noticeable about such amazing people is that, no matter their age, their faith is young – it is childlike, enthusiastic. They wake up with God every morning as if they found faith just yesterday, and it still causes them wonder. They speak of God with the joy of the newly-in-love. They remember answers to prayer with excitement and thanksgiving, as if this was something that had just started to happen to them.
I think this is what the psalmist means by a new song. God does not change. His character is steadfast, constant – always loving, faithful and good. He remains the same, yesterday, today and forever. But whilst this is true, one of the keys to faith is that we receive these truths as ‘new every morning’. They remain fresh, exciting, awe-inspiring. They put praise on our lips, peace in our hearts and joy in our spirits. They cause us to ‘proclaim his salvation day-after-day’ (v2), and ‘declare his glory among the nations’ (v3).
It’s easy to get tired and stale – in faith as in life. Which is why the infectious joy of the psalmist is so valuable. I need a bit of whatever he or she is having! Maybe you do too.
So today, can I encourage you to pray this psalm, and offer your praises to God. And may God renew our hearts as we do, so that we would, this day and every day, sing a new song to the Lord.
Saturday 14th June – Psalm 95 ‘Above all gods’
As many of you know, I’ve always loved my football. I played (not very well) till I was 40, and Match of the Day remains a staple of my viewing habits. I’m too old now to stay up till midnight on Saturday watching it ‘live’, it’s a with-breakfast pilgrimage on Sunday and Monday mornings for me!
My favourite part of the show has long been ‘Goal of the Month’. The show picks 6 or 8 of the best goals of the previous few weeks and then the winner is chosen at the end of the show. It used to be by the presenters themselves, though now you can vote online. The winning goal gets shown again, and also goes into the draw for ‘Goal of the Season’.
Many people think about matters of faith a bit like Goal of the Month. In the end, all ‘gods’ are like these good goals – fundamentally the same, you just pick whichever one you like the best, or that your team scored. It doesn’t really matter which, because a goal is a goal, isn’t it?
Today’s psalm reminds us that, when it comes to ‘things eternal’, this way of thinking isn’t really an option. There is only one God – the Lord, ‘Yahweh’ (v1,v3) – and this God is ‘above all gods’.
The psalm also reminds us that there are good reasons for ascribing ultimate authority to this one God. He made the whole world (v4), even the powerful seas (v5) – and, crucially, he forms a loving relationship with his people (v7). Unlike the other capricious deities of the time, this God wasn’t unpredictable or tyrannical. Nor does this God just wind the clock up and let it run: he engages with his world, he takes pastoral care of us.
Shepherds in ancient Israel lived and travelled with their sheep, protected them from danger (no paddocks or fenced fields in those days), fought off wild animals, walked miles to find water and pasture – in other words, gave everything for their wellbeing, because their flock was precious.
This is the God we worship! And it’s helpful sometimes to reflect on whether we’ve unconsciously allowed other things to divert our gaze from adoring this God. We might not have ‘idols’ or shrines as such, but a ‘god’ can be anything that takes our attention away from our Creator. Money, popularity, an all-consuming hobby, an addiction – you name it.
Today, we can declare with confidence, that God is above all these gods. This God –our God – is the true and only ruler of the earth. ‘If only we would hear his voice’ (v7) – and of course, when we read this psalm, we do! And this voice tells us that God is our Rock, our salvation, our shepherd, and that we are precious to him.
May these glorious truths inspire us to thanksgiving and worship today.
O Lord my Rock, you are the great God, above all others. I gladly put you first, and worship you with thanks and praise. Truly I am in your care – be my shepherd today. Amen.
Friday 13th June – Psalm 94 ‘Founded on righteousness’
I must confess that I’m too young to remember the classic 1960s TV series The Avengers. On the other hand, I’m also too old to have watched all of the recent Marvel film series, also called Avengers. So, I’m at a bit of a disadvantage in terms of cultural reference points in this whole area! What is true, though, is that, while many of us watch or read stories about people who avenge on behalf of others, in this day and age we feel uncomfortable ascribing this kind of behaviour to God.
Today’s psalm is one of those that doesn’t get read much nowadays. Psalm 91, 95, 96, 97 and 98 – the ones all around it, in other words – are very popular, and are often read or quoted. Psalm 94…. not so much. The reason is there in the first line: ‘The Lord is a God who avenges’. It’s ironic in some ways because we don’t have a problem with the idea generally, as the popularity of ‘avenger’ motifs in culture makes clear. And avenging is different to revenging, which is a critical distinction to make. Revenge is something we do personally to someone else in the face of something we have suffered. Avenging is more objective: it is justice meted out, usually on behalf of someone else – i.e. not as a result of our own injury. So, we do need avengers – those who enact justice on behalf of others.
What’s important about these ‘avenging’ psalms – and there are plenty of them – is that by asking God to act, we are removing our own right to do so. When faced with injustice, we take it to God, rather than take the law into our own hands. This is the value of these psalms – they provide an outlet for our cries for justice, and take those cries to the one true source of justice and righteousness: the Lord God Almighty.
I’m sure it will have been hard for many of us to read the words of this psalm – which particularly addresses the issue of bad governance – and not find ourselves thinking of particular countries or situations in the world at present. It is not for me to comment on any of those directly: but what this psalm does is provide us with a blueprint for how to face issues of corruption (v20), injustice (v5,v7, v21), hubris (v4) and violence (v6) in our world and turn them back to God in prayer.
Ultimately we go back to the ‘Rock that is higher than I’ – we ask God to intervene. Psalm 94 gives us permission to name injustices and pray for God’s will to be done. We seek God’s justice, mercy and righteousness.
And as we do that, we find ourselves able to claim two wonderful promises hidden in this psalm: we find consolation in our anxiety (v19), and refuge in a time of trial (v22). How many of us need that at present!
One day, ‘judgement will again be founded on righteousness, and all the upright in heart will follow it’ (v15). But until then, let’s be thankful for these psalms, which give us words to approach God with the very real problems of our world; and remind us that God cares enough about his world to intervene.
Lord, in our fractured world, we ask you to bring your justice and mercy to wherever it is needed. Protect the vulnerable, frustrate the wicked, promote justice and grant us your consolation and refuge today. Support us, O Lord, with your unfailing love, and bring us joy. Amen.
Thursday 12th June – Psalm 93 ‘Robed in majesty’
Not many people have robes nowadays – at least , I don’t think they do! It’s a garment associated with authority or magnificence, isn’t it? The King even has his own Master of the Robes, a post which dates back to the 16th century, albeit now it’s more ceremonial than literal.
And this is the language of today’s psalm, which begins: ‘The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty.’ Whilst God is Spirit, many psalms and other scriptures like to imagine God as a physical monarch, with suitable imagery for authority and magnificence. ‘Robed in majesty’ is a wonderful, evocative phrase, but it’s no mere window dressing (pardon the pun). In this short psalm, we’re invited to sample the evidence for God’s majesty.
First, there’s our earth. A stable planet, which even the ancients knew to be ‘firm and secure’. I love playing records, and am always surprised to discover how many of my collection are older than I am. I can take out a piece of black plastic that’s still in pristine condition aged 60 – if only that would be true of me in time to come!
But these silly human comparisons pale when compared to the age of the earth. People often quote modern understandings of the age of the earth – approximately four billion years – as being an argument against God. But here the psalmist – 3,000 years ago, remember – uses it as an argument in favour of God. He made something that can last four billion years. Puts every empire, every construction, every piece of human ingenuity into the shade, doesn’t it?
Then there’s his throne, which is likewise established ‘long ago’. Whilst we can’t point to a literal throne, we know that God’s authority has been seen in his dealings with our world for thousands of years – God has been God for as long as humans have existed. God is, as the psalm says, ‘from all eternity.’
Next, there are the seas – which in ancient thought symbolised all the forces of chaos and darkness. But in this marvellous poetic image, even the seas ‘have lifted up their voice’, because God is mightier than even the greatest waves. In other words, even the strongest force in nature is as nothing compared to the greatness of God.
Finally, there are God’s ‘statutes’ – that is, his laws and promises. These, too, stand firm. There is an air of permanence about everything God does, and his character (his ‘holiness’) does not change.
In our shifting times, our uncertain world, how good it is to reflect on the unchanging majesty, might and authority of God. It is this God into whose loving hands we place ourselves today. And may that thought give us the confidence of hope, the strength of joy and the peace that passes understanding.
Father thank you that you are robed in majesty. I lift my voice to you, even as the great waves do. Help me to stand firm and secure upon the rock of your promises. Abide with me today. Amen.
Wednesday 11th June – Psalm 92 ‘Good to praise’
‘Dear Optimist and Pessimist, while you were arguing about whether the glass was half full or half empty, I drank it. Yours sincerely, The Pragmatist.’
This great little note was written on the door of the staff room at the cafe for the homeless in Bristol where our church used to take teams regularly. It always put a smile on my face before we opened the doors, and then at the end of the evening when I came to get my coat.
I wonder how you would describe yourself: are you naturally a glass half-full or half-empty sort of person? It’s not a moral judgement to answer either way, the world needs both. Half-empty people are more naturally inclined to effect change, even if those changes are more likely to be appreciated by half-full people!
But when it comes to approaching God, it’s quite helpful to be a bit of both. ‘It is good to praise….’ begins our psalm for today. It was a song specially written for Sabbath worship, but its application is universal. It is a healthy attribute of faith and life to praise God – from first thing in the morning to last thing at night (v2).
There’s no caveat to this declaration: it’s not just for the good times. It might be said that praise is especially important in the not-so-good times. In that sense, it’s good to be half-full people – we can praise God’s character (v2) and what God has already done (vv4-5). Things that don’t change, things that form the bedrock of our lives.
We need to praise. Praise lifts our hearts and our spirits. Praise restores a sense of gratitude and wonder. Praise renews our faith, and gives us courage to believe that God is still God, that he still loves us and will remain faithful, and that, one way or another, things will be OK.
Far from being an escape from reality, praise anchors us in reality, and balances our perspective again. What is interesting in this psalm is how open the psalmist is about having enemies, and being surrounded by wickedness (vv6-11). These sections of the psalms are never easy to read to our modern sensibilities, not least because these enemies are usually described as particular people – but it’s possible to generalise the idea of enemies as being all the bad things that we face in the world, and especially those things which drag us away from God.
Whilst we may not wish to visualise particular people, we can all imagine other challenges or situations where we can declare God’s victory and find hope and inspiration once again. That’s why I still read the whole psalm, rather than the edited highlights!
In that sense, this type of praise in all situations is for the half-empty people too, those of us who are naturally wired to notice difficulties and problems. The pattern of the psalmist reminds us that we can take these honestly to God and declare his victory. We live our faith in the valley as well as the mountaintop.
Praise ultimately is what helps us to flourish (v12-13). It gives us a healthy perspective: celebrating the good, finding faith to face the bad. May God inspire us to praise, as we commit our day to him – why not pray through this psalm for a few moments, declaring God’s praises, that we too might flourish ‘in the courts of our God’ today.
Tuesday 10th June – Psalm 91 ‘Under his wings’
This psalm has long been a favourite of many people, but during the global pandemic it took on an added poignancy. Verses 3-6 seem to capture the prayer that most of us wanted to pray – we did fear a ‘deadly pestilence’ and it’s natural to pray for protection from it.
I myself have often returned to this psalm over the years, and prayed it for key seasons of my life. The imagery of divine protection is profound and beautiful: ‘resting in the shadow of the Almighty’, ‘finding refuge under his wings’, ‘no disaster will come near your tent’ (a phrase beloved of campers everywhere!), ‘lifted up in angels’ hands…’
I remember hearing of one lady who memorised this psalm, to use as she went into an MRI scanner which diagnosed a brain tumour. It’s that kind of psalm, and in recent times Psalm 91 has gone to the top of many Christians’ most used scriptures.
Yet we need to sound a note of caution. Fundamentally, it is good and right to pray for protection in anxious times – and this psalm gives us the words for that. But we must beware using this psalm as some kind of magic charm. To pray it is not to guarantee that we’ll never catch Covid-19, or something equally nasty. There must have been people who’ve been severely affected by the virus, or even died from it, who read and prayed this psalm.
Above all, we must avoid the conclusion that somehow we have to pray this psalm to be protected. It is sobering to remember that the devil quoted – or rather misquoted – this psalm when tempting Jesus to put God to the test (Matthew 4:5-7).
In matters of sickness and healing, there is a mystery to these things. In many ways, this psalm is a natural partner to the previous psalm (90), which equally recognised our fragility in the face of bigger forces at work. What such threats and dangers do is to cast us back upon God’s mercy and protection: we recognise that our illusion of control is exactly that, and we seek with fresh urgency God’s love and favour, his divine sustenance instead.
Treated in that way, this remains a glorious psalm, one which practises true humility in the face of all kinds of dangers, be they viral (v3,6), physical (v5,7,10), emotional (v5) or spiritual (v2). Let’s pray the beginning and the end of this psalm, and may it be the air that we breathe today:
Lord, grant me grace to shelter under your wings. Be my refuge and fortress today. Answer me in trouble, rescue and protect me, and show me your salvation. For you are my God, in whom I trust. Amen.
Monday 9th June – Psalm 90 ‘A heart of wisdom’
It’s not easy to read the first half of this psalm. None of us really like to be reminded of the fragility of life, especially when we have pointed reminders of it in our daily news.
And yet the enduring appeal of the psalms is precisely their raw honesty. The psalms allow us to tell it like it really is, to express what is really going on inside our hearts, sometimes even to say the unsayable – and we love them for it.
It is a great comfort to have 150 songs, poems and prayers of such depth and honesty right at the heart of our scriptures. They tell us that our God is not a tyrant whose ego cannot tolerate criticism, but a loving parent who can withstand our rants and tears as well as our successes and cries of praise. They earth our doctrines in lived experiences. They make faith real.
Personally, give me honesty over platitudes any day. I imagine most of us feel the same. So in this series, we’ll take a walk through a section of the psalms – and my hope and prayer is that in them we will find a voice which echoes our innermost thoughts and feelings, and grounds them in God’s love and goodness.
What we also notice is that, in the worldview of the psalmist, God is always the main actor – at the centre of the stage. Things happen because God wills it. And whilst that sometimes makes for uncomfortable reading, on balance it is a healthy counterpoint to the modern view (even among Christians) which often relegates God to the sidelines of the drama. At its root, there’s an infectious humility which we all need in our daily lives.
So, how does the writer of Psalm 90 respond to their reflections on the fragility of life and the challenges of suffering? They ask God for several things: to accept their mortality (v12), which they describe as the ‘heart of wisdom’; to be satisfied with the sufficiency of God’s unfailing love (v14); to find joy again after a season of sorrow (v15); and for their work to bear fruit, according to God’s blessing (v17).
It’s not a bad perspective to face any season of our lives, is it? It strikes me that verse 12 onwards is a great prayer to pray – and I invite you to join me, that we might all gain the humble trust of the psalmist:
Lord, teach me to number my days rightly, that I might gain a heart of wisdom.
Lord, so often I do not allow myself to be satisfied with the assurance of your love – so today, I pray, satisfy me with that glorious truth and plant it in my heart.
As your love dwells in me, make me glad and grant me the gifts of gratitude and unexpected joy in this season of sorrow.
And may your favour rest upon me, that all I do might bear fruit for you. Amen.
Thy Kingdom Come: Thursday 29th May – Sunday 8th June
Thy Kingdom Come is a global movement of prayer for mission, running in more than 100 countries across the world. We will be supporting this initiative for this ten-day season. This year’s daily reflections centre on The Lord’s Prayer. You can enjoy these in two formats (click on whichever you prefer) – ‘Novena’ Daily Reflections and Prayer Journal.
Ascension 2025
Ascension Day (Thursday 29th May) is the great forgotten festival of the Church. To help redress the balance, in the days leading up to it, we’ll look at the passage in Acts where Jesus ascends into heaven, and ask ourselves: why does this matter? And how can we be inspired today?
Wednesday 28th May – Acts 1:8-11 ‘To the ends of the earth’
As a family we’re pleased to see ‘Race across the world’ back on TV over the last few weeks. The idea is simple: five pairs of people, with limited budgets, have to travel a huge distance. For example, in a previous series, they had to get from one end of Canada to the other (which, with huge deviations north and south, totalled more than 16,000km). Along the way, that particular series showcased the kindness of strangers (many of whom were quite obviously Christians) and some lovely healing in fraught family relationships – in other words a huge amount of grace amidst the race to be first.
We also saw some extraordinary landscapes. I must confess Canada has gone straight into the upper echelons of my ‘most want to visit’ list – both for the people and the amazing scenery. And it was a powerful thought to remind myself, as I watched one fantastic location after another: there is nowhere we can go on earth where Jesus cannot say, ‘this is mine’. It’s all His!
Apart from the escape to Egypt as an infant, as far as we know Jesus never travelled outside the land of his birth. All of his work was done, and his words were uttered, within approximately a 150-mile radius. And yet he is a global Messiah, his message is for the whole world. How can he spread his loving and merciful rule everywhere?
We need the Ascension: so that Jesus’ kingship can be declared to the ends of the earth. And this declaration will principally be through his followers, empowered by his Spirit. For as long as Jesus is limited by his human body, his message can only spread effectively as far as he can, within human constraints. But the ascended Jesus can empower his followers to witness on his behalf everywhere.
History from the time of Jesus’ Ascension is essentially a race across the world – to share the gospel, to make disciples of all nations, to declare the love and reign of Christ to hungry hearts. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him; and thanks to Pentecost, he is powerfully with us, even to the end of the age. As we look forward to celebrating Jesus’ Ascension tomorrow, let’s give thanks that we do so from every corner of the globe. And as we join with Christians in over a hundred countries to pray for Jesus’ mission as part of the Thy Kingdom Come prayer movement, may the Lord grant us grace to keep running our race, for His glory.
Tuesday 27th May – Acts 1:4-8 ‘Wait for the gift’
Today’s title is one that could often be said about my present-arranging skills. I’m not much good at remembering birthdays, I’ve lost count of the times that I’ve had to fess up to friends (or even family) that a gift was definitely coming – they just had to be patient, and wait a few days for it!
Probably my best/worst moment in this regard came when my wife and I got engaged. I had designed the ring myself (very romantic); but the ring took longer than planned to arrive, so wasn’t ready on the weekend when I had hoped to propose (not so romantic). After some stern words from one of my best friends, who told me in no uncertain terms that the act of proposing was far more important than whether the little box was ready, I did the deed the very next day, atop a mediaeval castle (romantic brownie points restored!). My wife-to-be just had to wait for the gift. (As a postscript, when the ring did arrive 2 weeks later, the fitting looked perfect, but was the wrong metal, so it had to be sent off again… d’oh!)
Nevertheless, the best gifts are worth waiting for. Today, Jesus tells his disciples to wait for the best gift of all (v4) – his very self, poured out into our hearts, by his Holy Spirit. It’s easy to forget that, when Jesus says these words, the disciples don’t know how long they will have to wait. Hours, days, weeks, months, years? All Jesus told them was to wait – and that the wait would be worth it: ‘you will receive power…’ (v8)
I wonder if that ten-day period of waiting felt interminably long, or refreshingly short? We’re told that they remained constantly in prayer (v14), which is tiring, so am guessing that by the Feast of Pentecost, they were starting to flag a bit. Waiting is hard.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll also have experiences of waiting for something from the Lord: sometimes it comes very quickly; and other times, it seems to take forever. We are God-chasers, but the chase can be a variable length. If you find yourself waiting on the Lord at present, let today be an encouragement – may it raise your faith to trust that the Lord will respond. You may or may not get the answer you long for: but he will certainly give you his powerful, soaking presence, sufficient for whatever life throws at you.
We need the Ascension: to call us to wait for the greatest gift of all. It’s a gift Jesus loves to keep on giving. ‘Keep being filled with his Spirit…’ (Eph 5:18) – may that be the reality for each of us today.
Monday 26th May – Acts 1:1-3 ‘Began to do’
In 2007 Alan Hirsch published a book called ‘The Forgotten Ways’. It posed the powerful question: when Jesus ascended back into heaven, he left just 120 active followers; when the Emperor Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire in 312AD, the Christian faith numbered approximately 10% of the entire population of the empire – or about 20 million people. During that 280 years, followers of Jesus had been heavily persecuted, their faith was essentially an underground movement. It had no buildings, no public officials and thousands of its followers had been executed during periodic pogroms.
So – and here comes the question – just how did this tiny group go from 120 to 20,000,000 (a 166,000-fold increase) in less than 300 years, with all those odds stacked against them? His follow-up question, and the reason for the book, was obvious: what can we learn from them today? What are ‘the forgotten ways’?
I won’t reprise his answers here; but as we look forward to Ascension Day on Thursday, I’m always struck by this little phrase at the beginning of the Book of Acts: (v1) ‘all that Jesus began to do and to teach.’ Surely Jesus had done plenty? More than just ‘begun’…?
But that’s the point: yes, he’d performed dozens of miracles – hundreds or thousands probably, of which 37 were recorded. Yes, he’d taught like no other teacher in history, and loved with a selfless, unconditional heart of humility that both amazed and scandalised those who saw it. Yes, he’d risen from the dead, the most extraordinary act of all.
And yet… and yet… it was just the beginning. What Jesus was limited in doing by the confines of a single human life – no matter how amazing that life was – would be limited no longer, once he ascended into heaven. After that, he could send something even more extraordinary: his very self, in the form of the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Christ. Once this Spirit was poured out, then all followers of Jesus would be able to live as he lived. That’s what ‘Christian’ means – little Christ, little Jesus.
Now there are hundreds of millions of little Jesuses, trying to do and to teach, just as Jesus did and taught. We may each of us feel but a pale shadow of the Master. And that is true, up to a point – but even our small contributions, our loaves and fishes, make a difference.
We need the Ascension: to continue all that Jesus began. May the Lord graciously continue that (ascended) work in us, and through us, today.