Daily Dose of the Word of God - Psalm 116

Erin Pacheco, Director of Worship

Transcript

Erin Pacheco  0:07  

Welcome to Elmhurst CRC’s Daily Dose of the Word of God. Today is Friday, May 16 and Sunday is coming!  It’s the SEASON of Easter, and we are responding in all kinds of ways to the reality of Jesus’ resurrection life. I’m Erin Pacheco.  Our Bible reading today is from Psalm 116, which opens with the words “I love the Lord, because…”  The rest of the psalm is a resounding testimony to the goodness of God in times of trouble, with lots of movement from death to life, from terror to rest, from sorrow to praise. This is actually one of the traditional Passover psalms, meaning that Jesus would have sung these words with his disciples at the last supper, right before his crucifixion. It’s easy to imagine him drawing comfort from these words, knowing that he was about to live through this pattern, held by the love of God. As you listen to this psalm, which words resonate with you? 

Erin Pacheco  1:21  

Psalm 116 (NLT)  I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. Because he bends down to listen,     I will pray as long as I have breath! Death wrapped its ropes around me;     the terrors of the grave overtook me. I saw only trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Please, Lord, save me!”  How kind the Lord is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! The Lord protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and he saved me. Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me. He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. And so I walk in the Lord’s presence as I live here on earth!   I believed in you, so I said, “I am deeply troubled, Lord.” In my anxiety I cried out to you, “These people are all liars!” What can I offer the Lord for all he has done for me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the Lord’s name for saving me. I will keep my promises to the Lord     in the presence of all his people.  The Lord cares deeply when his loved ones die. O Lord, I am your servant; yes, I am your servant, born into your household; you have freed me from my chains. I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving     and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people— in the house of the Lord in the heart of Jerusalem. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!

Erin Pacheco 3:26  

This Sunday, we’ll be reflecting on God’s love for us – and our love for God. For some of us, this comes easily. For others of us, it’s a struggle. Psalm 116 invites us to remember God’s goodness to us, his compassion toward us — to remember times when we’ve called out for help and felt heard and seen by God — and most of all, to remember the mercy of God that covers all our sins and lifts us up from the pit of shame and death and into a life of freedom and rest and praise.

Erin Pacheco 4:10  

Let’s pray. God of grace, help us to be rooted and established – and grow — in your love today. May we have power, together with all your people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is Christ’s love for us, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that we may be filled with your life and love and power. Amen.