Anchor your trust in God

 

“…come quickly…my helper, my deliverer…do not tarry!”

When have you known a time in which these imploring words could have been yours?

“But as for me, I am poor and needy; come to me quickly, O God.

You are my helper and my deliverer; O Lord, do not tarry.” (Psalm 70:5)

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It matters not your political leanings.

It matters not if you anchor your trust in God, or a Higher Power, Divine Creator, Great Spirit…

Or if you try living anchored in nothing outside of yourself.

It matters not if you are young or old.

It matters not if you are looked upon with great respect for achievement, wisdom, knowledge, ability, kindness.

It matters not if you are looked down upon with scorn for who you have been, or for what you have done or not done…

Truly, we all, me and you, have had or will have a time of knowing the depth of the cry.

“But as for me, I am poor and needy! Come to me quickly, my helper, deliverer!

Come quickly! Do not tarry…”

When accidents shock? When events frighten? When illness at any age (or aging itself) decreases our resilience and strength, unnerving us beyond our own resources? In that worst moment, what matters? TRULY, THIS MATTERS:

That when any cry out, we each, knowing we are but one in the breadth of humanity, be moved by the common Spirit we share. And, in the midst of another’s sorrow, frightening in itself, we allow ourselves to respond. In that moment, as we arrive, whether by human instinct, Great Spirit, Divine Creator, Higher Power, or God of All, we carry into the very center of the deepest cry, a moment of comfort that makes “the worst” less able to crush.

And then we find, we matter—for we have become the arm of helper, of deliverer.

Even when our wariness is fostered by fear, IT MATTERS THAT WE NOT TARRY. For in those horrifying moments (or long-string-of-moments), a glimmer of comfort delivered means the burden is lessened—and at such a time, even the tiniest lessening of despair stirs flickers of unknown strength.

AND THEN, even when one in need cannot yet realize what they are absorbing, IT MATTERS THAT THEY MATTER enough to be tended to with care.

And, in a circular natural way that replicates breathing, letting another person matter to us, delivers being mattered about into us. And then we who deliver are also transformed, not by gratitude of the one in need, but because in delivering light in the darkest moment, we too catch flickers of the light that “being alongside” provides.

In that moment, we most likely will not notice a shift from deepest dark toward the earliest hint of earliest light. But what matters immeasurably is our willingness to be alongside in that moment, as threads of consolation from that are not even our own. And then, into the maelstrom of despair, we are woven into a portion of a tapestry that is a mantle delivering a reminder of protection, and we are woven together, one with another. And that matters, to self, and to all Creation.

Each month a member of the Cook County Ministerium will offer Spiritual Reflections. This month our contributor is Pastor Kris Garey, Trinity Lutheran Church, Hovland.