Ruby's Psalm



The Filipus students each wrote a psalm this week as part of our spiritual formation class. 

We had talked about the Psalms and the different kinds of spiritual seasons that they represent.  Some are Psalms of "orientation" in which the psalmist's relationship to God and the world seems to be healthy and everything is in its proper order.  Psalm 8 is a good example of this kind of Psalm.

Then there are Psalms of "disorientation" in which injustice, suffering, sin, or some internal struggle has initiated a season of turmoil and a sense of lostness.  Psalm 22 is a good example of this kind of Psalm.  David begins with these words "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"  Talking about this kind of Psalm is often significant for our students.  The popular spirituality that often gets communicated, intentionally or not, is that dark feelings, or a sense of distance from God, can only be the result of sin or, perhaps those feelings themselves are sinful or wrong.  Of course, the Bible is full of examples of godly men and women who express deep lament.  Is it wrong for David to feel abandoned by God?  Is he sinning by writing those words?  Of course, if we answer "yes" then we have a much deeper problem, since Jesus himself cries out to God from the cross using those words of David. 

Finally, there are Psalms of "orientation" in which we sense a return to order, a reclaiming of inner balance andn vision.  Psalms 139, 51, and even the well-known Psalm 23 might be put in this category, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..."

Most of the psalms that our students wrote are also psalms of re-orientation.  As they look back on their lives as a whole and try to express this current season poetically before God they recognize periods of darkness and suffering, but for most of them, this is a new season with new commitments and new possibilities.

Each of the students read his or her psalm and we talked about them together.  It was a meaningful conversation about our spiritual lives.

Ruby also came with a psalm yesterday.  She is constantly singing around the house or in the yard.  Brittany, an intern staying with us, helped put her psalm to music and they performed it together last night.  Here is Ruby's Psalm:

Love one another
And never never stop
And love Jesus our King of all Kings
Never stop loving Jesus
And love him forever
Be nice to one another
Even though you might not want to love God
Love Him anyway
Don't be afraid because Jesus holds you in His hands
Jesus loves you
Jesus loves you
Jesus loves you

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