A Song of Ascents. Of David.

Psalm 131 

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 marvelous for me.

2  But I have calmed and quieted my soul,

like a weaned child with its mother;

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

3   O Israel, hope in the Lord

from this time forth and forevermore.

Do you want to experience God this Advent?

Do you want your spiritual life to go to deeper places?

Do you want to encounter Him?

When the children of Israel went up to worship at the temple each year there was a collection of songs they would sing on the journey up the mountain to Jerusalem. These songs, called the “songs of ascent,” were the soundtrack for the family journey of ascent both physically and spiritually. As they sang they were “climbing higher” both into the worship of God and actual elevation. 

Psalm 131 is one of these ascent songs that also perfectly fits the theme of Advent. Take a moment to experience God with me through this guided Advent prayer.

Movement 1: Humility

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 marvelous for me.

• Take a moment to recognize your limits, your smallness, and lack of power.
• Take a moment to evaluate where you are trying to be God. Worries, control, manipulation, delusions of grandeur: hand these to Jesus in your soul.

Movement 2: Quiet

But I have calmed and quieted my soul,

    like a weaned child with its mother;

    like a weaned child is my soul within me. 

• Sit alone in a room with no distractions.
• Set a timer on your phone for 20 minutes and put it across the room.
• Let your soul settle. Let the distancing and distracting thoughts float by. Imagine that God is holding you. Recognize that God is holding your life.
• Allow yourself to sit in His Fatherly/Motherly arms until you experience a bit of his peace.

Movement 3: Hope

O Israel, hope in the Lord

    from this time forth and forevermore.

The final line of the song teaches us to recenter our hope in God. This is exactly what Advent is about. It is the reorientation of ourselves to God and his plan in the midst of a broken and twisted generation.

Advent is meant to fortify our trust

in God and redirect our hope

for this world and our

circumstances to him and His

forever love.

May your Advent lead you to the Light!

Grace and peace,

Pastor Harvey