“Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom toward those who love your name.”
(Psalm 119:132 – Watchword for the Week of Sunday 27 July 2014)
People are set in their ways. There is a certain rhythm to the things we do. We follow traditions and schedules. We like things to be repetitious. It’s comforting to know that school or work starts at a certain time every day. It’s a good tradition to worship every week. The annual cycle of vacations and holidays gives structure to the year. That youth follows childhood shows us we are growing up and when adulthood turns into retirement we have to learn to relax again. One thing follows another and that makes life easier.
This week’s watchword applies the same logic to God. At first glance it almost looks like it says: “Because you have always blessed me, please just keep doing so.”
What is true about that is that God is also described as a creature of habit. The creator of heaven and earth has something in common with us little creatures. We are not alone in this and people have talked about God’s rhythms from “the beginning” in Genesis all the way to the end of all times in Revelation. But this watchword is not actually part of that train of thought. Here we are in the longest Psalm of the Bible which has one purpose: To sing the Glories of God’s Law.
“Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your custom toward those who love your name.” Loving God’s name needs to be a custom just as God’s being gracious is a custom. This kind of loving is celebrated in the middle of a celebration of the Law – a book of stories and songs and regulations that help people not being stuck in their old habits and ways but empowers them to grow beyond themselves, to try and not be stuck in the daily rut of doing things the way they’ve always been but following a fresh new call that God gives anew every day. The love of the Law as Psalm 119 sings it is not about an ancient book but the love of being challenged anew every day in a variety of ways. Maybe I’ll drive a different route to work next time to shake things up a little.
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