Scripture
Psalm 130
1 Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD.
2 Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my supplications!
3 If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,
Lord, who could stand?
4 But there is forgiveness with you,
so that you may be revered.
5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
6 my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.
7 O Israel, hope in the LORD!
For with the LORD there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem.
8 It is he who will redeem Israel
from all its iniquities.
Devotional
Today, we turn to the evening reading, Psalm 130. “More than those who watch for the morning.” Today, the sun came up. And the day before. And the day before. In fact, morning is a pretty sure thing. Morning will come.
To say my soul waits and hopes more than those who watch for the morning—that’s more than a sure thing. Though this is a psalm written from the darkness of night, it speaks of a hope that is surer than the hope that the sun will rise tomorrow.
It’s important for us to remember that hope in sunrise doesn’t dispel the night. The psalmist still has to endure the darkness of night, but it’s with the knowledge that sunrise is coming. As we continue our journey through Lent, we are tempted by our experience of instant downloads and overnight shipping. We want to get to the end. We are tempted to skip ahead to Easter morning—to ignore or forget the events of Lent and Holy Week. Instead, let’s sit with the Psalmist and wait. Let’s continue our journey, not only anticipating what lies ahead, but noticing what God is doing at this very moment.
Message provided by the Miller Summer Youth Institute.