A Quieted Soul

Coming off a long holiday weekend can sometimes feel a little jarring. We just spent a few days celebrating, the church handed out water at the parade on Carolina Ave, got rained on, and now we're back to dealing with the thick summer humidity and heat. It’s Monday morning. The alarms are ringing again, the news is back to shouting. The daily grind just picks up right where it left off.

In worship on Sunday, we looked at Jesus offering us an "easy yoke" and a place to rest our worn-out souls. Today’s reading from the daily lectionary, Psalm 131, is a great Monday follow-up to that promise.

David sings:
“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. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother...” (Psalm 131:1-2)

I love the blunt honesty here. David is basically saying, "Lord, I’m stepping off the treadmill. I’m not going to pretend I can figure out all the massive, complicated problems of the world."

It's incredibly easy to get swallowed up by the heavy stuff, the broken systems, the endless political arguments, the sheer weight of people's trauma. You probably feel it too. We’re constantly told we need to be outraged about the latest headline, have an opinion on everything, and carry the weight of the world on our shoulders.

But Psalm 131 invites us to just...stop. A weaned child doesn't sit with their mother to demand a meal or get something from her. The child is just content to be there. Safe. Quiet.

As you head into this week, remember you don't have to carry it all. You don't have to figure out things that are "too great and too marvelous" for you. It’s okay to just sit quietly with God for a few minutes, let the noise fade, and be held.

Prayer:
God, the world is loud and the work is heavy. When we are tempted to take on more than we were meant to carry, remind us to sit quietly with you. Calm our souls today. Amen.