Journal

Psalm 13 - Personal thoughts for the congregation

Posted on November 29th, 2009, in the evening

I just re-discovered the following entry which I wrote a number of months ago for my occasional series on Worshipping with the Psalms. Every time I remember this series I want to pick it up again, so to that end: here are my reflections on Psalm 13...

I've found it hard to give full and honest voice to many of the early psalms in my own worship, and harder still to think about leading a congregation in their often unfamiliar themes. Worshipping with Psalm 13 has been a different experience entirely.

From the plaintive beginning - "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?" - to the trusting resolution - "I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me." - these are movements I have made before before God. As I join with David's words I have both the comfort and the joy of knowing that I'm not alone.

It's incredible that these deeply personal lyrics were collected as part of the liturgy for Israel's corporate worship. This is the same theme that came up in Psalm 6. I'm renewed in my conviction that I need to look further into how the Israelites used the Psalms in practice.

Perhaps some people may find the sense of abandonment in Psalm 13 as hard to relate to as I do the cries for God to destroy my enemies in other psalms. In recognising that fact I think I learn more about the relationship between the personal and the corporate in worship on a wider scale.

Bringing these themes into the corporate space is a way of celebrating with those who celebrate and mourning with those who mourn. I also think that anyone who has ever experienced the sentiments of Psalm 13 - even if they don't feel them right at this moment - can sing those words with integrity, drawing on their past experiences with God.

One of the particular realities of corporate worship is the sense of agreement and shared experience in worshipping together. Which is one of the reasons that I'm absolutely committed (somewhat against the flow of contemporary ecclesiology) to gathered 'Sunday' church.