Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“While I kept silence, my body wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.”
NL Daily Devotion for Tuesday, December 28, 2021
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Life is hard, but not because God’s “hand is heavy upon” us. It’s hard because we make it hard. Hard for ourselves, hard for others. Sometimes it’s hard because of random occurrences no one could have expected. It’s just hard sometimes.
The psalmist has made their own life hard by refusing to acknowledge their mistakes. They’ve tried to keep it from God, and maybe even themselves. No wonder they feel so lousy. I can relate. When I’m miserable, a closer look at myself quickly reveals that I’m not being honest in myself in some way, whether about something that’s happening in my life, something I’m feeling, or something I’ve done. Hopefully I figure out that I need to get whatever it is off my chest asap if I hope to feel any better.
What things make me feel stressed or sad?