The peace of living human sized lives
Psalm 131
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
1 O Lord, my heart is not lifted up, my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvellous for me.
2 But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother;
my soul is like the weaned child that is with me.
3 O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time on and for evermore.
How much of our anxiety and worry, our distress and despair arises from our thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought to (Romans 12:3)? The second half of vs. 1, the writer, David, says he has have decided to not “occupy” himself with “things too great and marvellous for me.” The operative word is “occupy” – a word that implies spending time on, being focussed on, allowing it to dominate our thinking and energy. And how often is that true – spending time, excessive time, on things that we have no control over, things that are beyond our ability to fully grasp, let alone to manage?
The invitation is to live into the joy of living human sized lives. To not allow ourselves to believe the tempting voices to live bigger, to not try to manage things we have only limited knowledge of, to not imagine ourselves as anything but human beings. Being content with being persons who live into the joy and wonder of being human sized.
In order to live this way, we need to trust. To trust just a little child trusts their mother. The little child trusts that their mother will care for them, look after them. Little children do not worry themselves with concerns larger than their ability, beyond their age. And if young children are forced to concern themselves with things beyond their age, we think there is something wrong.
David, the writer, imagines his soul calm and content with God, just as a young child is calm and content when with their mother. To hope in the Lord (vs. 3) is to trust in God, to believe that God will bring about the transformation and good we all deeply desire. The psalm invites us to trust God, and not fret about things that are beyond our ability or control.
PRAYER:
O Lord, we often are tempted to live larger than human lives, trying to understand and manage things “too great and too marvellous” for us. Teach us the calm and quiet of living human sized lives trusting you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.