February 12, 2007

I. Readings
Psalms 97, 112, 135
Isaiah 63:1-6
1 Timothy 1:1-17
Mark 11:1-11

II. Selections
Psalm 112:4
[ Those who fear the LORD] rise in the darkness as a light for the upright;
they are gracious, merciful, and righteous.

Isaiah 63:6
" ...I trampled down peoples in my anger,
I crushed them in my wrath,
and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth."

1 Timothy 1:3
But the aim of such instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith.

Mark 11:8
Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields.

III. Meditation: Fear of you

Those who fear you, says the psalmist,
rise in darkness as a light for the upright;
they are gracious, merciful, and righteous.

I would fear you but do not fear your rage;
for my image of you does not encompass
your wrathful trampling down of peoples,
crushing out their lifeblood upon the earth.

Give us love that comes from a pure heart,
a good conscience, and faith that is sincere;
then fill us with awe, like awe that caused
the common folk to spread upon the road
their cloaks and branches before the colt
that carried Jesus on his entry to Jerusalem.