Psalm 121 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 121 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1I lift up my eyes to the hills- from where will my help come?
Verse 2My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Verse 3He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.
Verse 4He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
Verse 5The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
Verse 6The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
Verse 7The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.
Verse 8The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and forevermore.
Devotion
Yesterday we read that Abram was asked to leave his homeland, traveling through dry, hot desert to an unknown land of God’s promise. I have never traveled through an actual desert, but I have traveled through other desert-like spaces: grief, disappointment, financial hardship, and spiritual emptiness. These were not places of comfort. I wanted a place that was familiar. I wanted to go to a place where I was in control.
Such journeys might make us feel lonely. They might even lead us to question our faith. But they might also be an opportunity to be confronted with ourselves and to make communal and spiritual connections. God has created everything, including us; God knows our destiny and dwells with us on the journey.
Prayer
God of the sun and moon, the hills and mountains, the oceans where the universe connects, even in our dry spaces: Thank you for your presence. Help us remember who you are, that our destiny is in you and that you are with us on this journey. Amen.