Friday, February 17, 2023

Today’s Scripture Reading 
Psalm 99

The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!

The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples.

Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he!

Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.

Extol the Lord our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!

Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the Lord, and he answered them.

He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees, and the statutes that he gave them.

O Lord our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.

Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the Lord our God is holy. (NRSV)

Reflection

Strawberry Bluffs, Lamar, Arkansas: a well-kept secret, hidden behind winding dirt roads off a state highway, the bluffs are adorned by piney woods and welcoming shrubs and even feature a cave nestled below them. Atop the bluffs, one may behold a spectacular view clear across the next town. I’d heard more than a few locals extol its virtues over the years, but I remember so clearly the day I decided to navigate them, hoping for a miracle.

In early spring 2010, I received devastating news from my aunt, who’d just learned the results of the biopsy confirming her Stage 1 breast cancer. What a gut punch. After the phone call, my first instinct was to hit the road, Bible in tow, to finally find Strawberry Bluffs. I yearned for beauty. I needed God’s creation. I craved space away from everything.

A bit lost as I sought the path to the crest, I parked my car deep in the woods below and wandered into a clearing. There I encountered large stones arranged like a living room (with a coffee table!). I took a seat, soaked in the deep green glory carpeting nearly every surface, then closed my eyes to commune with God and connect with scripture.

What unfolded in that clearing felt like a miracle—tender sunbeams trickled through a tiny opening revealing a bit of sky; a praying mantis sat next to me and would not leave my side. Most of all, the overwhelming, almost aching presence of God enfolded me in that space, and in it, I felt the blessed assurance that my aunt was in God’s loving care.

What is your “holy mountain” where God resides? Is it a church, tree, or terrace? It need not be fancy. May God be with you there.

Prayer
Holy God, we lift our words of praise to you from the sacred spaces of our hearts, where you meet the depths of our being and hold company with us, no matter where we are found. Amen.

Written by Nancy Benson-Nicol, Associate Pastor for Caring Ministries and Spiritual Formation

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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