Rev. Kevin M. Pleas

Psalm 63:1-8 October 7, 2007

O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name. My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast, and my mouth praises you with joyful lips when I think of you on my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

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By now you know that we're talking about what makes for vital congregations. We're all the way up to the chapter on contemplation in Christianity For the Rest of Us. Having talked about Hospitality, Discernment and Healing in the last three weeks, I hope you're all beginning to think and talk about what makes for a vital church.

This week, thinking about Contemplation, I want to do more than simply talk about it. They say, "Talk is Cheep." I suppose it all depends on who's doing the talking, but it's certainly true that we can talk endlessly about a subject without every getting beyond the realm of theory. I very much hope that at the end of this process we're in together, we will have more to show than the memories of some lively conversation. If a church is going to be a vital place, what we do has to be more than theoretical, and that, I believe, is especially true of contemplation.

This morning then, rather than just talking about contemplation, I'd like you to join me in the practice of contemplation for a few minutes. I invite you to sit back, relax, close your eyes if you wish, release the tension in your neck and shoulders, put aside whatever may be distracting you, and enter with me into a time of contemplation…

O God, you are my God, I seek you,

My soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you,

As in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Where do you come from in order to be here today? What have you put on hold in your life in order to spend these few moments in worship? Your marriage? Your children? Your gardening? The project that has to be finished before your next work day? Our lives are full to overflowing with the chaos of the world and the business of everyday activities. We rush from place to place, project to project, often without a clear sense of why, save that we have to get through everything that has landed on our to-do list. House work, yard work, laundry and cooking, family, business, church and leisure, keeping up with the news, fearing for the future, mourning the past, all this and more crammed together in an unrelenting progression demanding our constant attention. Truly, our souls thirst for God as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. (Silence)

I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,

Beholding your power and glory.

Because your steadfast love is better than life,

My lips will praise you.

I will bless you as long as I live;

I will lift up my hands and call on your name.

It just may be that we come to church for more than an interesting sermon, more than lovely music, more than warm fellowship. It may be that we seek out this sanctuary because we long for sanctuary. It may be that we come to steep ourselves in the power and glory of the Divine; to lift our hands and hearts to God in praise. Is it not the possibility of feeling, hearing, sensing, somehow knowing the living Spirit of God that makes our gathering in this place so special, more than merely social, more than merely entertaining? God is our center, our anchor, our inspiration. We are here to lift up our hands and call on God's name, to bless God as long as we live. (Silence)

My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast,

And my mouth praises you with joyful lips

When I think of you on my bed,

And meditate on you in the watches of the night;

Touched by the Spirit of Grace, our worship moves out from worship and fills the whole of our lives with joy and purpose. The love and grace of God becomes our constant companion, the background music of the whole of our lives. Our souls rest in God and are satisfied. Confidence begins to replace anxiety, fear gives way to trust, even in the dark hours of the night. We enjoy a rich feast of Spirit, which allows us to joyfully affirm that in God, all things do work together for good. (Silence)

For you have been my help,

And in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy

My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

We are held, we are helped, we are moved toward a deeper holiness and joy when our souls cling to God. Rising from this time of contemplation, we remember the words of Thomas Merton, "Prayer is then not just a formula of words, or a series of desires springing up in the heart - it is the orientation of our whole body, mind and spirit to God in silence, attention, and adoration. All good meditative prayer is a conversion of our entire self to God."

Amen.