I have chosen two pieces for the choir. The first, to open the service, has lyrics that remind us that God Himself is with us, and it calls on us to come before Him in humility. This is an expression of God's immanence, that is, His nearness to us.
The second anthem is a real favorite with the choir, and I think it is the third time we've sung it since I came on staff. It's a setting of Psalm 8 called "The Majesty and Glory of Your Name". That psalm, written by the young David as he reflected on the night sky while herding sheep, captures the way the Creation can glorify God and reveal Him to all who see the natural order of the universe. Again, it calls on us to be humble in the presence of God's transcendence over His Creation.
Light pollution prevents most of us from seeing the sky that David saw 3, 000 years ago, with it's millions of stars visible to the naked eye being only a drop in the bucket compared to the vastness of the universe. I found this picture of our own galaxy of stars, the Milky Way, as seen from an Andean mountain top. I thought this might be a close approximation of David's view:
"O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
all flocks and herds,
and beasts of the field,
the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Psalm 8
1 comment:
Joyce - I just want to say that your blog is an inspiration to me and I am so thankful that I get the priviledge of reading your posts! Thank you for your beautiful words of encouragement.
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