His Holiness and Glory

A Reflection on the Psalm for Sunday, March 10th, 2024:
Fourth Sunday of Lent

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Psalm 137

R. Let my tongue cling to my mouth if I do not remember you!

By the rivers of Babylon — there we sat down and there we wept when we remembered Zion. On the willows there we hung up our harps.

R. Let my tongue cling to my mouth if I do not remember you!

For there our captors asked us for songs, and our tormentors asked for mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”

R. Let my tongue cling to my mouth if I do not remember you!

How could we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land? If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither! 

R. Let my tongue cling to my mouth if I do not remember you!

Let my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy. 

R. Let my tongue cling to my mouth if I do not remember you!

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

As I walk on my journey of faith, I sometimes find myself wondering how often I stop and give praise to His holiness and glory. Perhaps you’ve thought about this from time to time. Sure, I pray, read my bible, and worship with my favourite Christian playlist – who hasn’t had a praise and worship dance party in the kitchen? 

But am I really embracing all that He is? 

As I meditated on this beautiful hymn, I was overcome by emotions. Feeling my own anxieties and fears, I embraced His holiness and felt my heart open and grow stronger – and then it hit me. We get caught up in our struggles, and we try to fix  on our own the problems, anxieties, or troubles that we are facing. Admittedly, I often find myself almost turning away from the One who is the holiest of all, and I need a consistent reminder that God is gracious and merciful. He understands our pain and sadness so deeply that, centuries after this psalm was written, He still speaks directly to us through these words. 

We will always be faced with hardship, and that is okay, but we need to turn to God in those times. God wants us to seek Him always, but we need to trust Him to see that. He wants to hold our hand and lead us down His path. He wants to restore us and strengthen us from His throne. Through Him we will know His perfect will.

Today, and throughout the coming week, I will choose a simple, faithful way to invite His holiness and glory into my heart by reading and continuing to meditate on this Psalm. I invite you to join me and to see how differently you feel when you embrace all that He is.

Let us pray: Blessed are you, O Lord ….



Shelly Fillmore

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