Psalm 145:8-14 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 145:8-14 on biblegateway.com
Verse 8The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
Verse 9The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.
Verse 10All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your faithful shall bless you.
Verse 11They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power,
Verse 12to make known to all people your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Verse 13Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The Lord is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.
Verse 14The Lord upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down.
Devotion
“The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.” The psalmist’s words are so fitting. The scene before me is glorious as I gaze through the branches of the ancient live oak, its Spanish moss wafting in the morning breeze. The ever-changing Georgia marsh is newly spring-green, dependent on the ebb and flow of the tides, and abundant with wildlife: blue herons, white egrets, chirping songbirds, and nagging crows produce a cacophony of sound.
The Georgia state bird, the brown thrasher, is new to my Minnesota eyes and ears. A plain, brown bird with a noisy habit of scratching, thrashing the ground in search of food. And it, too, has a lovely song, not unlike the cardinal. Some days they try to out-sing each other, warming my heart. It is as if they are joining the psalmist: “All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord.”
The Doxology is on my lips.
Prayer
“Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise him, all creatures here below;
praise him, above, you heav’nly host;
praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.” (ELW 884)