5:1 Give ear to my words, O Lord;
consider my groaning.
2 Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.
4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies;
the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
9 For there is no truth in their mouth;
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.
10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.
Walter Brueggemann, professor of Old Testament at Columbia Seminary, says that there are three basic kinds of Psalms in scripture. Psalms of orientation that remind us of our place in the relationship with God. Psalms of disorientation that speak to the fears, failures and hurts that we experience in life. And Psalms of reorientation that start off lamenting, but result in giving thanks to God.
What an amazing thing to consider the places where we all meet the experience of the Psalms. There are times when we feel good, when we want to sing praises to God for all that God has done for us. Other times, we feel like cursing the creator of the universe. And then, when we become transparent before God, we find ourselves being made right with God. From our pain comes joy. Though the sorrow may last for the night, joy comes in the morning.
The Psalmist in Psalm 5 finds himself in a place of despair. He is under attack from physical enemies and he cries out to God. It sounds familiar, as if this isn't the first time this has happened and it won't be the last. Yet the Psalmist finds himself praying to God in the morning, preparing a sacrifice and a watchful attitude of prayer before the Lord. For the Psalmist, this isn't the first time he has prayed this prayer and it won't be the last. He knows that through the ebb and flow of life, we come to God in various places. God meets us where we are. May we too, have the assurance and confidence that in all things--the day to day routine, the waking and the sleeping, even when enemies are all around us--that God is our refuge and strength.
Prayer: God, as we go through this day, help us come to you with our joys and our sorrows, and hopes and our hurts. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear your presence with those who seek your righteousness. Amen.
G. Thomas Martin