Psalm 146

One of my favorite Psalms is 146. I feel like I say "one of my favorite Psalms is..." a lot. That is probably true thought. They all have so much meaning and emotion just seeping out of them. However, Psalm 146 has a special significance to me over the last few months. As I have been reading the Psalms I don't just sit back and pat the psalmist on the back for his beautiful language and great imagery. Instead, like I said before, the Psalms become my prayers. The hope of the psalmist becomes my hope. Consequently my hope in God changes the way that I live my life. I try not to live in fear or the shadow of oppressive systemic evils, but I try to live in the light of God's love who is Christ Jesus.

Psalm 146:8-9

The LORD sets the prisoners free; the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous. The LORD watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

As this Psalm has become my prayer God has placed opportunities in my life to help live out the prayer. I feel like we should not only pray to God four help but to pray that God would use us in God's work. When this happens however, you need to expect and believe that God will answer your prayer and be ready to respond. The other day I had the opportunity to do just that. As I was walking down the street I was approached by a man outside of the post office. His name was Leon. As Leon began talking to me it seemed as though all my life slowed down and all else around me vanished. Leon was just asking for a quarter saying that he was hungry. I was able to give Leon a few dollars before I headed into the post office. The line was long, I did not stay long. As I came outside I saw Leon was still standing there and I remembered that I had found an Eat N Park gift card in my wallet just a day before. I asked Leon if I could take him to get something to eat. What do you know, there was an Eat N Park two doors down from the post office. I was able to sit and chat with Leon just for a bit before I went to a meeting. As I left, Leon was behind me eating his mid afternoon breakfast and I moved on to the rest of my day.

Even though I may never see Leon again, I continue to pray that God use me in his work to bring about his kingdom here on earth, always hoping to live in the light of what is to come.