Psalm 65:1-13 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 65:1-13 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed,
Verse 2O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come.
Verse 3When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions.
Verse 4Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple.
Verse 5By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.
Verse 6By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might.
Verse 7You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples.
Verse 8Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.
Verse 9You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it.
Verse 10You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth.
Verse 11You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness.
Verse 12The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy,
Verse 13the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy.
Devotion
It seems like only yesterday that my wife and I set out on our first backpacking trip together. We had everything we needed for water, but had not bothered to fill up before we actually hit the trail. With empty water bottles, we started hiking and soon became thirsty. When we finally found water, it was too dirty to drink, so we hiked to our first campsite to boil it. Upon arriving, the matches did not work. Sixteen miles and a day later, we stumbled into camp two and found matches. Never have we appreciated water so much! That water quenched our physical thirst, but there’s another water that quenches our spiritual thirst. We thirst after the waters that flow abundantly from God. The baptismal waters and God’s word purify us and make us clean. Without those waters we are left stumbling on the trail.
Prayer
God of the living water, we are blessed that you let your baptismal waters flow. May we always be refreshed by your cleansing waters so we can keep hiking. Amen.