Psalm 133 - A Deeper Unity
WORSHIP
LAUDS
Written by David Katibah; The Telos Group
Read Psalm 133
“We don’t just welcome you or accept you; We need you. We are insufficient without you…There is comfort in being welcomed, but there is dignity in knowing that your arrival just shifted a group toward deeper wholeness…The whole cosmos is predicated on a diverse and holy community…To bear the image of God in its fullness we need each other.”
- Cole Arthur Riley, This Here Flesh
Beauty abounds when we live in unity, when we are of one heart, writes the Psalmist. We find our hearts unlocked, our spirits alight, our bodies preserved, when we live with bountiful welcome and joyous generosity. In spite of our fears, when we display this kind of life together—characterized by open doors and open hands—abundance emerges. We have more when we share.
The Psalmist knew that a community living in mutuality and unity announces the unexpected possibility of abundance, rich abundance even: it is like an anointing of precious blessedness, “running down,” “running down,” “running down”—it cannot be contained! It touches everything! It is more than we could enjoy even if we tried!
The kind of unity this Psalm speaks of extends beyond physical provision too. It demands presence in the realm of relationship. When we separate ourselves from each other through acts of social exclusion, we suffer. We are incomplete. We bond ourselves to a lie of scarcity.
The blessing that flows from God when we live as one, however, transcends boundaries that we would otherwise think uncrossable: from Mt. Hermon on the northern edge of the Israelite world, to Mt. Zion at the center of Israelite life. Perhaps in our world: from Palestinian to Israeli, conservative to progressive, wealthy to poor.
In this season of disembodied connection, of pilgrimage from one home to another, it is tempting to believe that we are disconnected from each other. But the invitation of this Psalm goes so much further than simply gathering together in a building, though that is of great value. This community can still live together in unity. We can still share our wealth and attention, worship together in spirit, and extend an open welcome into the family.
Perhaps the question before us is who have we not welcomed into our abundance? Who have we chosen to believe we cannot be one with? Who have we excluded from the family of “life forevermore” where God’s blessing is bestowed?
When we begin to believe that our own flourishing is tied to the flourishing of our neighbors, that we can experience God’s abundance when we live as one, we may finally experience the wholeness for which we are all longing.
Reflection.
Where do you most strongly identify a place of scarcity in your life, specifically in the realm of relationship? What would God’s abundance look like if it met you there?
Who is not here that should be? Who haven’t you/we extended an abundant welcome to?
Pray that God would empower a spirit of unity and mutuality at Christ City.
David Katibah is the Director of Communications and Christian Engagement at The Telos Group, a DC-based international peacemaking nonprofit. As an American of Syrian descent, David is passionate about conflict transformation in the Middle East and the transformative potential of Christians participating in peacebuilding around the globe.
VESPERS
Praying
By Mary Oliver
It doesn’t have to be the blue iris,
it could be weeds in a vacant lot,
or a few small stones;
just pay attention,
then patch a few words together
and don’t try to make them elaborate,
this isn’t a contest but the doorway into thanks,
and a silence in which another voice may speak.
