Click this link to hear an audio version of the below text narrated by SOTH member Jerry Rhinehart:
Psalm 120 (NIV)
A song of ascents.
1 I call on the Lord in my distress, and he answers me. 2 Save me, Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. 3 What will he do to you, and what more besides, you deceitful tongue? 4 He will punish you with a warrior’s sharp arrows, with burning coals of the broom bush. 5 Woe to me that I dwell in Meshek, that I live among the tents of Kedar!
6 Too long have I lived among those who hate peace. 7 I am for peace; but when I speak, they are for war.
Psalm 120 begins a section called The Psalms of Ascent. These fifteen songs will be our soundtrack, like an ancient mix-tape, as we journey closer to the cross and the resurrection of Jesus on Easter morning. We begin at the crossroads between “complaining about how bad thing are to be pursuing all things good”. (Peterson, 21) We know this world can be hard. Even our best intention can stir up conflict and difficulty. And, in the midst of it all, our heart often longs for home. Let us turn our hearts toward home this day. Bring any burden you’re currently carrying, regardless of how your hair looks or how together you feel. We will stumble or stride in together. Come, let us call to the Lord, our God. Let us begin this journey home.