HEAR
Psalm 61:1-4
1 Hear my cry, O God;
listen to my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth I call to you,
when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I;
3 for you are my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me abide in your tent for ever,
find refuge under the shelter of your wings.
The notation accompanying Psalm 61 invites the leader to play this song on a stringed instrument.
I know the psalms are songs, but sometimes I forget that when reading them. Recently, though, as part of the Northern Lights concert, I had the great joy of singing to harp accompaniment. So now I’m imagining singing this psalm with the gorgeous sounds of the harp carrying this prayer heavenward.
Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.
The psalmist isn’t shy about commanding God to hear, to listen. This doesn’t strike me as a polite request, an “if you have time, could you please” request. This is urgent. God is needed.
The psalmist is at the end of the earth, or so it feels. Whatever has happened to create this faintness of heart, it has left this beloved one feeling isolated.
At the end of the earth, you kneel down in despair at the great distance that separates you from home. At the end of the earth, you’re alone. No one understands what you’re going through. You can’t share your grief without people trying to fix you, offering advice when all you really need is for someone to hear you.
Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.
At the end of the earth, you need something larger than yourself, larger than your problems, larger than your anger and hurt. At the end of the earth, you need a rock higher than you, a vantage point from which to see clearly. At the end of the earth, you need God to lead you, to show you the way.
Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.
At the end of the earth, when your heart is faint, you sing your prayer to the God under whose wings you have known refuge before. You sing your prayer to the God who has promised you will never be alone–not even at the end of the earth.
The one who has called you by name is your defender, your protector, your shelter. The one who gave you a heart for singing hears the song you sing.
Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.
Amen.