Psalm Reflection: The Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B

“Lord, let us see your kindness, and grant us your salvation.” - Psalms 85

I used to love jawbreakers. I have always eaten way too fast, so having a candy that was designed to last as long as possible was an incredible thing for me. They were my favorite candy until I was about 11 years old. 

One afternoon, I was walking down the wooden stairs in our house from the top floor to the main level and I had a jawbreaker in my mouth. In an instant, the jawbreaker shot back in my mouth and lodged itself perfectly in my throat. I ran downstairs and to my parents and gestured in a panic to my throat. My dad grabbed me and performed the Heimlich maneuver immediately. Thankfully the jawbreaker shot out of my throat and onto the floor, saving my life. I have not had one since.

It is a harrowing and terrifying experience to suddenly not be able to breathe. Thankfully we learn to do it unconsciously and automatically from the moment we are born. Can you imagine if we always had to be actively thinking about our breath and consciously choosing to do it? I think we would find it difficult to do anything else at all, like eating, working, sleeping, or concentrating on anything. Our ability to breathe is simply a gift. We did not need to ask for it or learn how to do it in the way we consciously learn other skills. It is a built-in gift by virtue of how God designed us.

Salvation works the same way. We did not have to earn it, and the more we concentrate on trying to control it for ourselves, the more easily we fall into feelings of scrupulosity and existential dread. Salvation is not a work that we do that requires some supreme sacrifice or work on our part. I think that some people have an idea that following Jesus is boring or miserable because of everything you have to do or give up. On the contrary, following Jesus is a free gift and an invitation to everlasting joy. It is new life.

Before we receive the gift of salvation in baptism, we are essentially trapped in a womb of our own sin. We truly cannot understand what life outside of it is like, and the only way to get there is to be born. A baby does not earn their birth, they cannot ask for life or work toward it in any way. They simply receive the nourishment the mother gives them in the body until such a time they grow to the point that they need to come out.

In the same way, God is always trying to nourish us. We do not need to ask or even be aware of Him for Him to love us. The more open and curious we are about Him, the more we progress to the point we are ready to receive the gift of new life in Him. 

We do not earn it, it is a gift freely given.

And in the same way that losing our breath is scary, so is the threat of losing our salvation. But if we run to the Lord, He can restore us. As the Psalmist reminds us, it is God who grants salvation, and He does so out of His kindness. It is not a miserable affair of personal sacrifice and work, nor is it something we can earn. It is a free gift that is always available to us whether we want it or not.

What is your image of God? 

Is He kind, or is He someone you are constantly trying to please pacify? 

Does your image of Him align with the Bible?

Are you trying to earn His love, or do you live in response to it?

I find that many Catholics are much harder on themselves than the Lord is, because they have an image of God that is far more stoic, angry, formal, or distant than the Lord truly is.

This week, I invite you to sit with an image of God who is kind. Spend time receiving goodness from the Lord, proclaiming the truth of who He is. Pray through something like Psalms 145 (below). Reflect on the times in your own life when these words aligned with what was going on in your own life, and give thanks to the Lord for the many gifts He has given you, and those that are on the way.

I will extol you, my God and king;

I will bless your name forever and ever.

Every day I will bless you;

I will praise your name forever and ever.

Great is the LORD and worthy of much praise,

whose grandeur is beyond understanding.

One generation praises your deeds to the next

and proclaims your mighty works.

They speak of the splendor of your majestic glory,

tell of your wonderful deeds.

They speak of the power of your awesome acts

and recount your great deeds.

They celebrate your abounding goodness

and joyfully sing of your justice.

The LORD is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger and abounding in mercy.

The LORD is good to all,

compassionate toward all your works.

All your works give you thanks, LORD

and your faithful bless you.

They speak of the glory of your reign

and tell of your mighty works,

Making known to the sons of men your mighty acts,

the majestic glory of your rule.

Your reign is a reign for all ages,

your dominion for all generations.

The LORD is trustworthy in all his words,

and loving in all his works.

The LORD supports all who are falling

and raises up all who are bowed down.

The eyes of all look hopefully to you;

you give them their food in due season.

You open wide your hand

and satisfy the desire of every living thing.

The LORD is just in all his ways,

merciful in all his works.

The LORD is near to all who call upon him,

to all who call upon him in truth.

He fulfills the desire of those who fear him;

he hears their cry and saves them.

The LORD watches over all who love him,

but all the wicked he destroys.

My mouth will speak the praises of the LORD;

all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever (Psalms 145).

I am praying for you, please pray for me, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, July 14th, 2024, which is the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B: Psalms 85:9-10, 11-12, 13-14.