I've been examining the psalms in scripture, and I find myself intrigued that King David, in his last recorded words in 2 Samuel 23, was described beautifully as the "sweet psalmist of Israel" instead of as a mighty warrior king. His sweet psalms to God were remembered in this moment in a way that overshadow his victories in battle. King David, was, perhaps more than anything else, a singer of songs that pondered God's greatness, not his own.
I love the idea of a psalm. In Psalm 47, we are told, "God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a skillful psalm." The word psalm, I learn, is a poem of contemplation, but the word comes from the Hebrew verb that means to wisely ponder.
To think carefully and deliberately, to contemplate deeply, and then to record skillfully our praises to God constitutes a part of our calling as followers of Christ. I believe our pondering songs might take many artful forms, but I find myself challenged in this call to record skillfully, in some way, what I've contemplated deeply about Jesus.
This is so interesting, Heather. We are told to speak to each other in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs... but I've never thought at all about writing one myself. My heart is strangely excited by your teaching.
ReplyDelete