Tuesday, March 19, 2013

The Feast of the Passion Year C - Psalm 31:9-16

Psalm 31:9-16
There comes a point in prayer when the irresistible force of believing what one hopes will be runs into the immovable object of what is. The psalmist has not reached that point and judging from the litany of lament may never give up on the hope of deliverance. That is because the psalmist believes the last word belongs to God (my times are in your hands) so even a life spent in sorrow where continual misery saps one's strength while enemies conspire and friends betray can be endured as a "slight and momentary affliction" (2 Corinthians 4:17) The capacity to endure the terror that surrounds is not a given and takes an enduring courage beyond our ability, so the mere fact that the psalmist continues to pray would seem to say the prayer has been answered as the irresistible force of hope pushes back against the unmovable object of overwhelming trouble.

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