Psalm 16

An Advent Interruption – Psalm 16

/ Anthea Kotlan / Leave a comment
(An Advent Wreath with the first candle lighted. )

This time of year, Christmas can feel like a destination found at the top of Mount Everest. So, loaded down with a backpack full of expectations, I slowly make forward progress up the mountain.

Interrupting my expedition, the Lord invites me into the season of Advent. When I go to church on Sunday, November 28th, our church, with churches all over the world, will light the first candle on the Advent Wreath. This lighted candle reminds me to mark the first Sunday of the Advent season.

I find a moment to pause in the soft glow of candlelight to consider what is most important to me. I set down that heavy backpack and pray.

A Prayer for the First Sunday of Advent

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

(Anglican Church in North America Book of Common Prayer 2019)

Advent, an essential part of the liturgical calendar for believers worldwide, gives me a season of 4 or 5 weeks to prepare my heart and mind for Jesus’ birthday on December 25th. The tone of the prayer above reflects so clearly the struggle we live in between Jesus’ birthday and Jesus’ great return.

Spiritual darkness surrounds each of us, so I must find ways to put on the armor of light and cast away the works of darkness. If I am so focused on the arduous climb up the mountain to Christmas day, I might miss out on my need to prepare myself spiritually. Advent is a gift of margin at a time of year when excess can overwhelm me.

Today I am praying through Psalm 16 with Advent on my mind.

1 Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.”

Psalm 16:1-2 ESV

O God, you hear my cry to be preserved and you answer with your presence where I can take refuge and rest. There I find clarity. Being with You is a way I can put on the armor of light.

In Your presence, I realize that all I have does not compare to you, Lord.

In Your presence, I know I can hold loosely to anything else I possess.

In Your presence, I can give up having it all.

Great freedom is found in this place of surrender. I am no longer weighed down by what I feel I must have.

I have all I need in You, alone. Sitting in this truth remedies the drive to find perfect Christmas gifts for everyone and spend my free time shopping.

3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight.
4 The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips.

Psalm 16:3-4 ESV

Thank you for the gift of a faith community. Friends and family who follow You fill my heart with delight. I see a greater revelation of who you are, Lord, in how your image is reflected in each of their lives.

Give me compassion for those who run after and worship another god. Keep me accountable to pray for them to see and seek You.

Help me see opportunities in this Advent season to share the real reason for Christmas with my circle of influence. Help me to invite those who might not have a church home into mine. Let me cast away the works of darkness by practicing intentional hospitality.

5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

Pslam 16:5-6 ESV

Lord, You make provision for me for now and in this season of waiting for Your son’s return.

Guide me through Advent and help me make more room in my heart for You. You are my chosen portion. May my checkbook ledger and schedule reflect that truth.

What could I give up to make more head and heart space for Advent contemplation?

What could I take on to help me spend more time with You?

7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.
8 I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

Pslam 16:7-8 ESV

Thank you for the encouraging guidance found in Your word.

Even in the dark night, when I don’t know where to turn, the Holy Spirit brings truths from the Bible to mind.

As I am prone to get lost and disoriented, thank you for the supernatural GPS system of guidance you provide. As I light a candle on my Advent wreath, may I find ways to share the light of Christ this week?

9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure.
10 For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol or let your holy one see corruption.

Psalm 16:9-10 ESV

Lord, I thank you today for my salvation. Your son came near, died on the cross, and rose again to give me access to You. Help me to find ways to walk in that peace and security today as a way to cast away the darkness. Through the saving work of Jesus’s death on the cross, I have light living inside me. Help me to shine.

11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 16:11 ESV

Lord, thank you for this first week of Advent. Help me take time to be in your presence and refill my heart with the joy found there. Help me to be ready to share joy with a watching and weary world. As I spend time with you each morning, dress me in the armor of light, so I might bring you glory. Amen

This year the first Sunday of Advent is November 28th, the second Sunday of Advent is December 5th, the third Sunday of Advent is December 12th, and the fourth Sunday of Advent is December 19th. So stay tuned in December for more posts on Advent. I hope you will consider taking the Advent journey with me this year.

How do you and your family celebrate Advent?

*You might have noticed that this is a second journey through Psalm 16. I believe the psalms are amazing pieces of Biblical wisdom that can be used to process various emotions. Hence, the term: soul tending in the psalms.

Giving Thanks Does Me Good – Psalm 95

/ Anthea Kotlan / Leave a comment
(Woman with her arms raised high.)

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of gathering with a group of believers from across my denomination. The opening service for that weekend’s gathering featured one of my favorite worship leaders, and I sat with some lovely young women who embraced the opportunity to sing with full gusto. These are my people. Hymns and worship music are stories of God’s faithfulness that remind our hearts and renew our minds.

I walked into the service carrying some painful situations and while nothing of my own circumstances changed during the event, I felt a heart shift. While raising my hands high and giving joyous thanksgiving to God, my anxiety lessened, my irritation with life’s unfairness waned, and gratitude flooded my heart. In a season of leaving and letting go, God gently reminds me to give Him thanks because it does me good.

God does not need me to remind Him of all He has done for me, but clearly, I need to recall. Something unique happens in corporate worship carrying me closer to God’s throne even when I feel least capable of getting there by myself. On that evening, I needed an assist.

Psalm 95 contains both a call to God’s people to worship with a thankful heart and a dire prophetic warning. 

1 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

Psalm 95:1-2 ESV

Lord, thank you that you invite me to gather with my community to sing, make a joyful noise, praise, and come into your presence. You know that I am designed to be encouraged by sisters and brothers in the faith. 

3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also.

Psalm 95:3-4 ESV

Lord, thank you that there is nothing out of your reach. No place on earth that you aren’t there. You are always present everywhere.

5 The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
6 Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!

Psalm 95:5-6 ESV

Thank you that when I kneel before you, I have an opportunity to know you more. I can also surrender my own efforts and plans to Your sovereign will.

7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
Today, if you hear his voice,
8     do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
9 when your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.

Psalm 95:7-9 ESV

Lord, thank you that you know me full well. You understand that my heart can become world-weary and slowly but surely toughen up in a protective stance. A hard heart struggles to hold on to hope and believe You are working. Keep me from grumbling because the caustic effect on me and those around me can destroy our relationship. Help me to hear your voice in daily doses.  

10 For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart, and they have not known my ways.”
11 Therefore I swore in my wrath, “They shall not enter my rest.”
Psalm 95:10-11 ESV

Lord, keep me steadfast and surrendered to your will. Guard my heart against moving away from You in slow and imperceptible ways. Save me from the dire consequences of separation due to unrepentant sin and rebellion. Amen

In this week leading up to the celebration of Thanksgiving in the United States, I must intentionally cultivate an attitude of thankfulness. Left to my own devices, I default far too easily to spotlight the less and the lack. I will choose to praise You and give thanks for all You are doing.

Don’t mind me, I’ll be the gal blasting praise music in my car as I run errands.  As I walk in the mornings, I’ll take time to recall Your good deeds. As I spend some extra time in my kitchen next week, I’ll give thanks for the abundance of opportunities to show hospitality.  

How about you? How will you cultivate an attitude of thanksgiving this week? I would love to hear your thoughts.

A Remedy for Soul Weary Days Psalm 16:7-11

/ Anthea Kotlan / Leave a comment

Are you tired? Are you worn out?

God’s guidance continues to challenge me to dismantle the influence of hustle culture on my life.  For decades I’ve been immersed in the need to do more, work harder, and keep going. My type A personality struggles to avoid the trap that hems me in on all sides with chaos of competing calls to never stop. I will never arrive or complete what is most essential according to the world. Choosing the narrow way, and daily exposure to God’s directive for time management realigns my priorities.

The second half of Psalm 16 gives special direction for finding a place of refuge that refuels me on my journey. The ever forward motion can cease when I pause and rest with God. (See last week’s blog post for the first half of Psalm 16 https://antheakotlan.com/2021/06/02/psalm-16-gods-prescription-for-rest/.)

7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
    in the night also my heart instructs me.
8 I have set the Lord always before me;
    because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

When the dark of the night surrounds me it is easy to become disoriented and discouraged. How often has sleep been stolen by anxiety’s grip in the middle of the night, pulling back the covers and causing fears to loom larger? The worst dilemma is not facing a difficult decision, but it is actually the lack of clarity. In the night God will show up and give guidance. Perhaps it is in the night, when I finally get still, I can hear His voice above the hustle of this world.   

9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
    my flesh also dwells secure.

10 For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
    or let your holy one see corruption.

My rest is even found in celebrating in the security of my now and not yet. In a world full of anxiety and threats, I can rest assured in soul security found only in the Lord. I can know my eternal soul is safe forever in the company of God.

11 You make known to me the path of life;
    in your presence there is fullness of joy;
    at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

True soul tending rest delivers gladness and thankfulness. I know where I am going with God. He will never leave me or forsake me. He has revealed a way to live in His presence, and I can escape an exhausting cycle of second guessing, criticizing myself, and striving to do more and more. The joy found in the presence of God is soul sustaining for the ongoing journey of life this side of heaven.

Lord, teach me to take time away with you to restore my soul in the rest. I choose to listen to the faithful counsel of your word and sit with you and rejoice. All I need is right here with you. Amen.

How do you find rest?

God’s Prescription for Rest – Psalm 16:1-6

/ Anthea Kotlan / 1 Comment

I am comfortable living in hustle culture. The work harder, do more, don’t give up message ricochets through my mind every single day on repeat. God’s call to rest is not easy for me for me to answer. I love to check things off a list, track my steps, and multi-task.

Psalm 16 is a prayer that provides God’s instructions for rest because the creator of the universe, and the maker of me, knows my design capacity. He knows the lure and seductive nature of hustle culture and the lies it tells. He offers a counter narrative.

1Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge.

2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    I have no good apart from you.”

Notice the verb, take. I must actively take the refuge God offers. This offer of refuge is much like a prescription given to me by a medical doctor. It must be taken daily to be effective. Refuge will not come upon me unless I choose it, plan for it, and seek it.  I might have to give up other activities in order to slip away to the place of refuge. I will never arrive there on autopilot.

Do I really believe, “I have no good apart from you”? There’s a song that I remember singing. “Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.” (Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus by Helen H. Lemmel) When I do focus entirely on Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, everything, everyone, every screaming deadline, and item on the to do list fades away. I discover the reality of what is truly important…only things of an eternal nature.

I spend entirely too much of my time being distracted. All in the name of efficient multi-tasking, I often do many things at one time. However, when I come fully into God’s presence, and unplug from the noise of this world, I can take refuge in Him. Refuge is a place set apart to be alone with God and soak in His presence. In that quiet time, I gain clarity on my priorities.

3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
    in whom is all my delight.

4 The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
    their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
    or take their names on my lips.

God designed me to serve and worship him in a faith community. Even in a time of Covid, I have to find ways to connect and not become isolated. There is rest found in the gathering together with God’s people. I need others to lift me up in prayer, teach me, challenge me, and keep me accountable. Just as I would do those things for other members of the body. Attempting to follow God on my own is exhausting and leaves no margin for rest. God calls me to find delight in community.

Just as I seek community with a like-minded people of faith, I also need to be wary of those who “run after another god.” Some of the nicest people you could ever meet, might not be seeking Jesus. I must be discerning in how I spend time with unbelievers. Time spent with unbelievers can be draining. While I am called to be a witness to a watching world, I am also called to guard what I take into my life.

5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
    you hold my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
    indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

A grateful heart finds satisfaction in listing all that God has provided. Do I allow myself to buy into the world’s idea of scarcity, or do I see the way the LORD has provided my portion, my cup, my lot and my beautiful inheritance? God has given me everything I could ever need for now and for eternity. Will I consider a soul tending reset?

How do you find rest when you are busy? Do you ever get caught up in hustle culture?

Next week, I will unpack the rest of Psalm 16 as a prescription for rest. There are five more verses that are rich with clear direction regarding finding rest in the land of hustle.

Lord, help me to see how I can intentionally seek rest in you. Help take that time away with you and guard my mind when I do. Help me to escape the “do more” lure. Draw me into the shelter of your surrounding presence. Amen