(Lectionary passage for Proper 14B for August 16, 2009)
Psalm Series: Part 2 of 3 on Psalm 34 (verses 9-14)
"Teach me how to be good."
Last weekend Steve and I took some much needed vacation time to visit with our family in Pennsylvania. Steve's immediate family all live there, and 2 of his cousins also flew in from out of state, so there were lots of us around the whole weekend spending time together. Or should I say, spending time with the kids. It's amazing isn't it, when there is a new baby, or babies in our family's case, how they become the center of attention. Between Steve's brother and sister, we now have 4 nieces and a nephew who are all under 4 years of age. Our newest 2 nieces are 4 months and 2 weeks old. Let's just say they are not lacking in attention--especially last weekend with everyone visiting! It was great to see them, and it was hard to leave, knowing how fast they grow up. The 2 week old will probably be walking and talking by the time we see her again at Christmas--or at least trying to do both!
[My nieces and nephew (aged 2.5 yr, 3 yr, 4 mo., 4 yr, 1 wk), August 09, Philadelphia, PA]Last weekend in the midst of diaper changes, feedings, naps, and other infant, toddler, and preschooler activities, I spent quite a bit of time reflecting on the innocence and wisdom of children and all that I have to learn from them. My nieces and nephew are constantly amazing me with their newest accomplishments and achievements. Rolling over, walking, talking, and potty-training are among the big accomplishments of these first few years. But there were other things I saw happening. Helping hold a younger sibling and tenderly kiss her cheek. Making a sister laugh just by making silly faces. Helping mom or dad retrieve any number of needed items for the two babies. These children are not unusual in these activities, and they have their moments too. All children, I imagine, push their parents button just when they have the least patience to deal with it. But as an aunt, I was able to step back and just love these kids and watch in amazement how they are growing and maturing into cute, helpful, and good kids.
During the trip, I found one of my sister-in-law's parenting magazines and picked it up to read. One article struck me as profound and wise. It was an article that asked children "What's the best tip you have for your parents?" As you might guess, some of the advice centered around what you might expect: a three-year-old's suggestion, "Give more marshmallows" and a four-year-old's idea, "Take me to Disney World to see all the princesses." But some of the others left me amazed at the wisdom from the mouth of babes as the saying goes. A five-year-old said, "Listen when I am talking" and one twelve-year-old expounded on that by saying, "Let me speak. Sometimes when I say something, my mom doesn't let me finish my sentence." One five-year-old child said, "Give me a million hugs every day" and yet another, age ten, said, "Always give your kids enough attention and the love they deserve." All of these are wise, but one struck me as true wisdom. Six-year-old Delaina from Connecticut, said, "Teach me how to be good." [1] Teach me how to be good. Truly, out of the mouth of babes...
The psalmist in today's Psalm 34 text is dealing with this same question of how to be good and offers some wisdom to aid in the teaching. Last week Craig talked about the experience of tasting and seeing that the Lord is good from verse 8. As you might remember, this Psalm is written in the Hebrew as an acrostic, where each line begins with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in order. It's also a Psalm of Thanksgiving, but in addition to that, it's a Psalm that offers wise council and teaching, much like the book of Proverbs.
Join me, if you are able, in reading aloud the section of today's focus--starting at verse 9 and finishing with verse 14.
"9 O fear the Lord, you his holy ones, for those who fear him have no want. 10The young lions suffer want and hunger, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. 11Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. 12Which of you desires life, and covets many days to enjoy good? 13Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. 14Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it." (Psalm 34:9-14, NRSV)
As we look at this specific section, we see that it is dealing with the six-year-old's advice, "Teach me how to be good." The Psalmist asks the rhetorical question of the "children" which includes anyone wanting and able to learn. We can substitute disciple or learner for children, or we can recognize how we are Children of God and the Psalmist is speaking to us the question: "Which of you desire life, and covets many days to enjoy good?" (verse 12) Then the advice and wisdom follows for anyone who fears the Lord.
As a youngster and even more recently too, I struggled with the phrase "fear of the Lord". Why should I be afraid of the Lord, when the Lord is the one providing for my needs and helping me to lack no good thing, as the Psalmist says in verse 10? We see fear used two different ways in the Psalm: one way is in verse 4 of the Psalm where the Psalmist experienced God's delivering him of all his fears. And we must recognize that fears can sometimes be a good thing. We teach children to be cautious of stoves, stairs, and streets, because having a “healthy respect” or fears for some things are life-giving for basic survival. [2]
But the other uses of fear in this Psalm are a different word in the Hebrew that means something completely different. Our typical use of the word fear in English involves being afraid, but in verse 7, 9, and 11 “fear” is not being afraid. Instead fear means here to revere, or trust, or depend upon the Lord. Around the time this Psalm was likely composed, Near Eastern cultures used the phrase "fearing the Lord" to mean claiming ONE God to worship. [3] It involved singling out a specific God--in this case The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob--The Lord God Almighty, so we might translate it instead to say "Revere the Lord God Almighty".
The psalmist is making a connection between this fear of the Lord and enjoying good. The instructions that follow are in response to the HOW question--how is one to be good? Delaina's question is answered with two verses of instructions that lead to the good life that the Psalmist is experiencing because of his relationship with God Almighty, and so he provides this wisdom to others who want to know HOW to be good too.
This list of ideals is just that--ideals for behavior and action. It's the suggestion of an ethic to live by that places one in line with God's Kingdom. On one hand these ideals don't sound too hard. They aren't extraordinary. Yet, as we all know, these ideals are much tougher to follow day in and day out. "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit"—like gossip; lies; worry; using harsh words. "Depart from evil"—in the form of hatred; envy; lust; greed. "Do good"—by loving your neighbor; feeding and clothing the homeless; visiting the imprisoned. "Seek peace, and pursue it"-- bring wholeness and healing; dig wells for clean water; provide vaccinations; lobby for justice. The evils are part of our culture and are often hard to avoid. At the same time the good ideals are countercultural and are often hard to pursue.
I see this as one of those passages that is there to help motivate us to keep trying to live up to the ideals, while at the same time forgive us for when we don't quite hit the mark. We can't continually go around beating ourselves up for when we miss the mark, and yet we can't live as though God’s Kingdom is out of reach completely so why try to live at all. It reminds me of the quote by W. Clement Stone that reads, "Aim for the moon. If you miss, you may hit a star." [4] Or better yet, C. S. Lewis, the famed English Christian writer said, "Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither." [5]
Aiming for heaven. That idea reminds me of the Lord's Prayer. If you were here during Lent, you recall we spent the six weeks before Easter exploring the Lord's Prayer and what it means for us today. Jesus taught us to pray, "Your Kingdom come. Your will be done. On earth as it is in heaven." Bringing heaven to earth. "Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace and pursue it." They have a very similar ring to them.
Modeling how to be good and live these Psalmist’s ideals teaches the all the Children around us, in the most general sense, how we can all help bring heaven to earth and live into God’s Kingdom. It's just like we try to model right behavior and being good for children. Parents, and anyone involved in raising children, model how to be good to these children to help them live life to the fullest and enjoy good. The Psalmist is offering these ideals to us to help enjoy and share the good that comes from God alone. Jesus modeled these ideals when he walked the earth as our ultimate model and teacher. They are counter cultural, kingdom of Heaven practices, and they help teach us how to be good.
Just as parents model to their children, sometimes it's the children that model goodness back to us. At dinner one evening, our three-year-old nephew offered the blessing for the family. His little voice led us to pray, "God is great, God is good. Let us thank Him for our food. By his hands we all are fed. Give us Lord our daily bread. AMEN." I stood in awe as he knew every word. My pride and excitement in that moment was evident as I stood beaming from ear to ear. It is likely that he doesn't yet know what all the words mean, but that didn't stop him from modeling the practice of giving thanks and celebrating God's bounteous goodness back to us.
In the same way, we don't have to fully understand God's Kingdom to aim for heaven to bring it to earth. In that moment I got but a mere glimpse of the pride and love God must have when we model to others these practices that indeed teach us how to be good... when we keep our tongues from evil and our lips from deceit. When we depart from evil, and do good; seek peace and pursue it. It is in these small glimpses of God's Kingdom of heaven come to earth that I pause and thank God for the children in my life. It is in these times that I realize that the ideals of the Psalmist are not impossibilities, but they instead provide the target goal. Aim for heaven and you get earth thrown in. When we practice how to be good together as a community of Children of God, we model for each other the good in life. We walk together in the fear and reverence of the Lord, and proclaim it with our lives. "Come, O children of God, listen to us; we will teach you how to be good." Amen.
[1] Real Simple: Family Magazine, 2007, Their Words: "What's the Best Tip You Have For Your Parents?", page 16. [All children's quotes mentioned here are from this article.]
[2] Matthew Myer Boulton, "Pastoral Perspective" for Proper 15 in Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 3, eds. David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2009) 348.
[3] Richard Clifford, "Exegetical Perspective" for Proper 15 in Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 3, eds. David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2009) 347.
[4] http://www.quotesdaddy.com/quote/232056/w-clement-stone/aim-for-the-moon-if-you-miss-you-may-hit-a-star
[5] http://www.quotesdaddy.com/quote/232056/w-clement-stone/aim-for-the-moon-if-you-miss-you-may-hit-a-star
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