Tuesday, January 28, 2025  

Today's Scripture
Psalm 71:1–6

In you, O Lord, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
incline your ear to me and save me.
Be to me a rock of refuge, a strong fortress, to save me,
for you are my rock and my fortress.
Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and cruel.
For you, O Lord, are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, from my youth.
Upon you I have leaned from my birth;
it was you who took me from my mother’s womb.
My praise is continually of you. (NRSV)

Reflection

“Hope is a muscle!”

Many years ago, a participant in a wellness retreat breakout group offered this encouragement to me during an exercise that prompted us each to share our current greatest life challenges. At that moment, her words entered my consciousness like a balm. The notion of strenuously leaning into hope with the same focus and effort as if building up my biceps shifted my focus from reacting to acting in response to adversity. For that challenge, it fit.

We come to points in our lives, however, when we face obstacles that no amount of flexing or resistance training can overcome — when “efforting into hope” reveals nothing but how much our spirits have atrophied. That is when the grace of God — the immovable fortress of divine love and protection — gathers us in and under its shelter.

Whether the threats to our very being come from external forces, or from the harmful messages our inner saboteurs sling like arrows within our own minds, the ancient praise of the psalmist reminds us today that such threats are no match for God’s strong presence, in and through us, at every stage of our lives.

Prayer
Thank you, Lord, for reminding us that there is no shame in our acknowledging our weaknesses, for you meet us in our fragile moments with the promise of your protection and steadfast love. May this grace give us the strength to meet this day with hope and confidence. Amen.

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

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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