November 29, 2022
From Where Does our Help Come?
We’ve had a lot of people in the hospital lately, and a lot of families who are grieving the loss of loved ones.
When I meet with these families, I often find myself turning to Psalm 121 – a Psalm that I always associate with “The Sound of Music.”
I lift my eyes to the hills; From where does my help come? (1)
My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth. (2)
I find such comfort in the Psalms which remind us that God is in charge of the world, all creation, and us. I know that we would like to be in charge and would prefer total control over everything that happens to us. But since that isn’t going to happen, I need this Psalm even more.
I especially treasure the end of verse 7 which reminds me:
The LORD will keep your life. (7)
Christ comes to us again at Advent – in the darkest time of the year. It is into this darkness that the light of Christ shines once again.
I’m sure I won’t get everything on my Christmas list this year. First of all, I already have everything I need. But the problem is that my Christmas list includes things like an end to the war in Ukraine, peace in the Middle East, and an end to all the gun violence here at home . . . among many, many, many other hopes and dreams.
But God will be with me during this Advent-Christmas Season, just as God has always been with me. All I need to do is to lift my eyes to the hills and know that “the LORD watches over me.” (5)
In the promise of Advent,
Pastor John D. Morris