[Magdalen] Psalm 46 Reflection by David Currie

[Zephonites at aol.com]

Folks
 
I very uplifting article from my old Alma Mater Wycliffe Hall,  sent out  
in its termly letter
 
Blessings
Martin
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'A  Reflection on Psalm 46' originally appeared in the Spring 2015 edition  
of Contact, the ministry  magazine of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. 
Dr  David A. Currie writes: 
These  are tough times to be in ministry. I hear this from Doctor of 
Ministry  students around the world as they share about their struggles to make 
disciples  in congregations that have higher expectations than ever amid a 
broader culture  that has a lower estimation of religious professionals than  
ever.  
Our  first response is to redouble our efforts, deluding ourselves into  
thinking:  ‘If I just work harder, smarter, longer…, I can still lick  this!’ 
Of course, the main result is that we eventually find ourselves  licked –
weary, exhausted, discouraged, and despairing. When we can’t fix it  where we 
are, we turn to an equally fruitless  response: escape.  
We  ask ourselves, ‘Where is our refuge?’ Sometimes we delude ourselves 
into  thinking that the solution is a different congregation, or some other 
sort of  ministry. Our question isn’t all wrong –just the interrogative.  It’
s  not where is our refuge, but who is our refuge? Respite comes in a 
person, not  place.  
Psalm  46 helps us get the question right and provides the only answer that 
will  sustain us in ministry:  ‘God is our refuge and strength, an 
ever-present  help in trouble.’ (v. 1  –NIV)  To make sure we don’t go back to 
running ourselves into  the ground or running away, the Psalmist throws in a 
repeated refrain that  elaborates on the opening affirmation:  ‘The Lord 
Almighty is with us; the  God of Jacob is our fortress.’ (vv. 7, 11)  The  Hebrew 
highlights how God’s presence is both intimidating to enemies (sabaoth--’
Almighty’ in  the sense of Yahweh being the Commander-in-Chief of Heaven’s 
Armies) and  intimate for ourselves (immanu –’with us,’ same opening phrase 
used in  prophecies of Jesus who is Immanuel, God with us, Isaiah 7:14; 
Matthew  1:23). 
We  even have a hint of how to access this place of divine defense and 
relational  restoration in a repeated untranslatable Hebrew word that follows 
verses 7 and  11, and first appears at the end of verse 3: selah. The best  
guess about its meaning is that it was some kind of musical notation used to  
guide the temple singers, perhaps like a rest note. The effect is to  
punctuate the psalm by calling us to pause and pay particular attention  
particularly when our lives seem to be filled with falling mountains, roaring  
waters, and warring nations. 
Psalm  46:10a captures this selah spirit: ‘Be still, and know that I am  
God.’ Let these words seep down to the depths of your weary soul by  repeating 
them slowly and asking the Lord to make them a deeper reality in your  life 
and ministry. Shorten the text with each repetition and linger upon  each 
line before going on to the next: 
‘Be  still, and know that I am God…. 
‘Be  still, and know that I am… 
‘Be  still, and know… 
‘Be  still… 
‘Be… 
For  it is only out of this still place of knowing and being known that we 
can rest  in full assurance of the fulfillment of our ministries: ’I will be 
exalted  among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.’ (v.  10b) 
Dr  David Currie is _Director of the Doctor of Ministry  Program and 
Associate Professor of Pastoral Theolog_ 
(http://www.gordonconwell.edu/academics/view-faculty-member.cfm?faculty_id=15921&grp_id=8948) y  at Gordon-Conwell 
Theological  Seminary