Psalm 26:1-8 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 26:1-8 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
Verse 2Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and mind.
Verse 3For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in faithfulness to you.
Verse 4I do not sit with the worthless, nor do I consort with hypocrites;
Verse 5I hate the company of evildoers, and will not sit with the wicked.
Verse 6I wash my hands in innocence, and go around your altar, O Lord,
Verse 7singing aloud a song of thanksgiving, and telling all your wondrous deeds.
Verse 8O Lord, I love the house in which you dwell, and the place where your glory abides.
Devotion
A college dorm room is a strange and scary place. Even clean and ready for new occupants, it tells stories of the past. The Psalmist, in thanksgiving, applauds the house of the Lord, the place where God's glory abides.
How do we personalize and make "home" these spaces that mark our new beginnings? A pillow, a bedspread, a computer, a smartphone, a piece of art or a stuffed animal that has made many journeys with us in the past? And soon this new place feels familiar and connected to where we have been. The speed dial will offer safety when other symbols of home seem less than secure.
The journey of new beginnings is both individual and communal. In moments of newness, family and friends are made present, God's loving spirit blows and we are able to engage the stranger and explore new places of the mind, body and spirit. And in our service to neighbor, strangers become friends, family expands and home is limited only by imagination and faith.
Prayer
Be present, O God, in all that we say and do. Create in us new hearts. And may your steadfast love give light to our way. In Jesus' name, and for the sake of the world, we pray. Amen.