Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle A)

“Remember your mercies, O Lord.” - Psalm 25

Lists and spreadsheets are my love language. If I know I need to get something done I will obsess about it in fear that I will forget unless I write it down. Once it is on my to-do list, I can let myself be present to the day and the people around me, because I know I will get those things done the next time I sit down with my to-do list. That is why I love lists: they make my desire to remember secure, so I am free to be attentive to bigger things, relationships and opportunities rather than the small tasks of each day.

God, however, does not need a to-do list. What more could He do? He is already causing everything in the universe to exist! We know that God does not forget us, because if He did, even for a split second, we would cease to exist. He is always thinking about you.

Why, then, would the Psalmist be asking God to “remember,” when He clearly already does? God reminds us through the prophet Isaiah: “Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you” (Isaiah 49:15). God cares about you and your life, He does not need to be reminded to remember you.

The word remember comes from the Latin roots re, meaning “again,” and memor, meaning “mindful.” This meaning makes the Psalm sound as if it is directed at us, rather than to God. God does not forget, WE are the ones that need to be reminded of His mercies over and over again, because we constantly forget all He has done for us. Asking God to remember prompts us to remember as well.

What if we obsessed about sin and holiness (in a healthy way) the same way we do about the earthly things that consume us, like my to-do list? If my priority every day was to remember, to call to mind, God’s mercy for me, then I would certainly be more grateful and more forgiving toward myself. That is where true freedom lives.

Think about it, Jesus suffered an injustice. He died a death He did not deserve. He paid a debt He did not owe, because we owed a debt we could not pay. That is not justice, it is mercy and complete freedom. He gave us everything freely as a gift, and that is something we should not only call to mind every day, but something that should animate our joy and purpose in life each day.

This week, take some time to reflect back on the moments where God showed up for you. How has God delivered you from sin, darkness and despair in the past? How has He revealed His immense love for you, despite the fact that none of us deserve it? Bask in the gift of knowing that the God of the universe has not and will never forget you. He is with you now and always.

We are praying for you this week.

See you in the Eucharist.

Matt