Slices
Prepare
Reflect on these words from Ecclesiastes 3:14: ‘I know that everything God does will endure for ever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him.’
Bible passage
For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.
1 I said, ‘I will watch my ways
and keep my tongue from sin;
I will put a muzzle on my mouth
while in the presence of the wicked.’
2 So I remained utterly silent,
not even saying anything good.
But my anguish increased;
3 my heart grew hot within me.
While I meditated, the fire burned;
then I spoke with my tongue:
4 ‘Show me, Lord, my life’s end
and the number of my days;
let me know how fleeting my life is.
5 You have made my days a mere handbreadth;
the span of my years is as nothing before you.
Everyone is but a breath,
even those who seem secure.
6 ‘Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom;
in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth
without knowing whose it will finally be.
7 ‘But now, Lord, what do I look for?
My hope is in you.
8 Save me from all my transgressions;
do not make me the scorn of fools.
9 I was silent; I would not open my mouth,
for you are the one who has done this.
10 Remove your scourge from me;
I am overcome by the blow of your hand.
11 When you rebuke and discipline anyone for their sin,
you consume their wealth like a moth –
surely everyone is but a breath.
12 ‘Hear my prayer, Lord,
listen to my cry for help;
do not be deaf to my weeping.
I dwell with you as a foreigner,
a stranger, as all my ancestors were.
13 Look away from me, that I may enjoy life again
before I depart and am no more.’
Explore
Our readings in Isaiah have shown us the complexities of life in a fallen world: a world where God is in control, but his restoration of our sinful world to a sin-free, joyful new creation has not yet happened. And so, sometimes, we suffer.
We don’t always know the answers. It is not always clear what God is doing in our lives and in the wider world. Does this sound familiar to you in your life?
The psalmist here (probably David) begins by trying to be silent (vs 1,2), perhaps because he did not want to speak among his accusers. There’s a sense here in which his suffering may be because of some sin of his (vs 1,8,11), but we don’t know the details.
Ultimately, he isn’t able to stay silent, and so he speaks to the Lord (v 4 onwards). He recognises the fleetingness of life and how he is a short-term resident in our world (vs 4,5,12). He turns his hope to God and asks for salvation and protection from the scorn of fools (vs 7–10).
Respond
Perhaps today you will go (or have been) to church and be part of your church family. Pray that this might be a time when you are able to turn your hope to God and speak to and worship him. Read and pray through verse 7 in readiness.
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: 1 Kings 18,19; 1 Corinthians 16
Pray for Scripture Union
Read and reflect on John 1:14-18, the passage of scripture that Nic shared. Give thanks to God that because Jesus came to us in the flesh, he was able to clearly reveal to us the heart of God the Father. (This week's prayers relate to this story in Connecting You.)
