Psalm 103

This morning I read the 103rd Psalm. A friend joined me later and I reread it to him. Later this after as I prepared my sermon for Sunday, I envisioned how it would be a fitting climax to my Christmas Sunday message about God’s matchless grace.

“The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse nor will he harbor his anger forever; He does not treat us as we deserve or repay us according to our iniquities, For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us…” verses 8-12.

These words are like a subtle fragrance in a smoke-filled room, a beautiful melody hummed in the corridors of a crowded mall. They breathe something so foreign to the normal environs that when noticed they cannot be summarily dismissed.

I entered the haven of my office early today with a dull headache and an upset stomach that would eventually cause me to cancel my care group and to come home early. Still, when I opened my Bible to read and meditate these words settled in my soul and have carried me into the quiet reflection of an unusual evening at home (most Wednesdays I am at our care group).

As I enter my 62nd year and I face the recurrent challenges of the ministry, I am struck by the theme of this Psalm---God loves me as a father loves a son. The characteristic that most draws me into His care is the notion that “He does not treat us as we deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.” This statement of how God chooses to deal with us in the midst of our failures is a compelling component of His compassion and grace.

When I review the past year I think of unmet goals and unkept promises. It isn’t it important to list them—many have to do with the physical disciplines of exercise and diet and my ongoing struggles to treat my body as “the temple of God”. Other areas of ongoing concern include my penchant for worry, my tendency towards “workaholism”, my need to prioritize…and the list goes on. Sadly for me, many of these things were are areas of reoccurring concern, a signal that I am not growing as I should.

Still I am buoyed by God’s affirmation that His love is incomprehensively greater than we can imagine when we “fear Him” and seek to honor Him in our lives. Our heavenly Father is gracious in his forgiveness of our sins and His ongoing commitment to be “abounding in love” towards us.

Equipped with that knowledge I face a new year with an encouraged heart. I can remember my father saying to me “You can do better”, whether I was reluctantly mowing the year or begrudgingly assisting him a painting job as a teenager. Interestingly, I supported myself as a college student and young pastor through yard
work and painting, skills I honed at home growing up. All of that discipline and training was critical in my personal growth and development and my loving father administrated his care with a firm but gentle hand.

The process continues for me. A calendar change merely signal that another day has passed and we have tripped over into a new year. Nothing monumental...just more of the same…but the year changes from 2009 to 2010. And with the change, I recognize that for 44 years now I have been a follower of Christ and in September I began my 43rd year in ministry; with that there comes a growing sense of my dependence upon my heavenly Father. I am grateful that He loves me and forgives me., I am confident He will continue to discipline and direct me because of His love that is great for all who fear Him. That fear is a holy and reverential awe, and results in an ongoing astonishment that He, who knows me so well, loves me so much.