Shepherd of Israel, listen!
You, the one who leads Joseph as if he were a sheep.
You, who are enthroned upon the winged heavenly creatures.
Show yourself 2 before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh!
Wake up your power!
Come to save us!
3 Restore us, God!
Make your face shine so that we can be saved!
4 Lord God of heavenly forces,
how long will you fume against your people’s prayer?
5 You’ve fed them bread made of tears;
you’ve given them tears to drink three times over!
6 You’ve put us at odds with our neighbors;
our enemies make fun of us.
7 Restore us, God of heavenly forces!
Make your face shine so that we can be saved!
17 Let your hand be with the one on your right side—
with the one whom you secured as your own—
18 then we will not turn away from you!
Revive us so that we can call on your name.
19 Restore us, Lord God of heavenly forces!
Make your face shine so that we can be saved!
Reflection
The tables have turned.
In this communal lamenting Psalm, the writer seems to be speaking for the group in begging God to wake up to their cries and save them. This is a role reversal from yesterday’s text where Jesus was telling us to wake up. I know this feeling. You probably know this feeling.
Haven’t I sobbed and prayed and banged my fists enough?!
But this pandemic may be a painful reminder of how often we cry to God to answer us in the way we want answers. God rarely works on our time-table. God is hearing our lament. God is answering our cries, but often not in the way we want. We can get caught up in wondering how God could have allowed the pandemic to get this bad that we can forget all the ways that God has been vigilant to us during this time.
Amongst the chaos, loss, and grief – God has gifted us with scientists, doctors and nurses with guidance on how to keep ourselves and loved ones safe. God has made Their presence known through the generosity, service, sacrifice, compassion and creativity of many different people. It hasn’t been an instant answer and it hasn’t been easy. Some people have had larger impacts then others. Some have lost loved ones, some have been ill themselves, some have lost jobs, some truly do not know when they’ll be able to see certain loved ones again, some are overwhelmed by anxiety. We still have a long road ahead of us, but when the limitations of this pandemic have me feeling isolated or frustrated, I try to think about where God provided for me in that day. God is awake. I can see it when someone does something as simple as pull their mask back up when passing me on a walk.
By Rachel Callender
For Pondering & Prayer
Think about the last time you felt like God wasn’t awake to your tears. Was there something or someone that reminded you of God’s action in your life? What is one thing you can do today to help another person see God’s compassion?
Prayer: Wakeful Lord, we give thanks for all the ways you answer our prayers that we don’t even notice. Wake us up to the ways that your Spirit move through peoples hearts and spreads across the world. Amen.
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