Journal of Sacred Work

Happy are those who consider the poor. – – Psalm 41

The Journal of Sacred Work was created for caregivers of all faiths and of no faith. It is founded out of the Baptist Healing Trust, whose mission is: "To be a caring ministry devoted to healing with love in the Christian tradition."

     In recognition of our roots, our tradition, and our desire to offer love to all, we begin, today, an addtion to our regular daily meditations by launching a series of Sunday meditations. They are offered as support to all, but will most likely resonate with Christian caregivers whose faith rests in the ministry, teachings and glorious example of Jesus.

     A thousand years before Jesus, King David wrote (and sang with his harp – as in the image above) his Psalms in praise and thanks to God. Sunday is not only the day of designated rest – the Sabbath for Christians – but a day of living in gratitude. I know that I am grateful, today, for a particular thing. It is my wife’s and my 40th anniversary. What is it that floods YOU with gratitude on this day of rest?

   David, second king of Israel, wrote psalms of great beauty and eloquence. His words resonate with those who seek to live the Golden Rule three thousand years after they were written. In the first stanza of his 41st Psalm, he reaches out in love to both the poor and those who keep them dear in their hearts. It speaks to caregivers today who hold in their hands the Golden Thread of healing love.

Psalm 41 To the leader. A Psalm of David. (NRSV)

Happy are those who consider the poor;
   the Lord delivers them in the day of trouble.
The Lord protects them and keeps them alive;
   they are called happy in the land.
   You do not give them up to the will of their enemies.
The Lord sustains them on their sickbed;
   in their illness you heal all their infirmities…

Reflection:

Go to a Bible and read the rest of this Psalm.

• How does it speak to you in your work today?
• How does subsequent Chrisitan thought serve to modify some of David’s harsher language about his enemies that appears in later stanzas?
• How do we hold the poor and vulnerable in our hearts today.
• When we consider the poor, do we find ourselves sitting in judgment?
• Do we look down upon them with pity? Or do we consider them with compassion?

A friend once shared with me the saying: "Pity stops and stares. Compassion stoops and shares."

How might we share the gifts of our love and compassion today and this week with no expectation of thanks?