Lent 3 C - Psalm 32

Psalm 32

The sad truth about ourselves is that we don’t get to be “happy are those” until our bodies have done some “wasting away” and I don’t mean the kind that comes naturally. The really troubling “wasting away” comes from being good at hiding iniquity by living life as if “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” even though we’ve never left home. Psalm 32 encourages us to come to our senses and realize that acknowledging our deceit has a direct effect on whether we live as “happy are those” or as those who are “dried up as the heat of summer.” That is the gift of groaning all day long for if we were not made uncomfortable by a hand heavy upon us our ignorance would grow content with the bit and only be curbed when caught by the bridle of torment or trouble. And so truly “happy are those” who both hear and tell the truth about themselves and determine to be less stubborn so that groaning gives way more quickly to glad cries of deliverance.