Links for today’s readings:
Feb 11 Read: Proverbs 2 Listen: (1:53) Read: Psalm 32 Listen: (1:34)
Scripture Focus: Psalm 32:3, 9
3 When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
9 Do not be like the horse or the mule,
which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
or they will not come to you.
Reflection: Mule Behavior
By Erin Newton
Mules are notoriously stubborn. They are hybrid creatures; the result of breeding a female horse and male donkey. They are sterile, albeit hardy, creatures. Farmers and ranchers utilize the hardiness of the mule, yet a quick search for mules reveals a plethora of pictures depicting a bridled mule, firmly planted, resolutely fixed in place despite the pull and command of its handler. Despite all efforts, they often refuse to move.
We have our own idiom to describe people who refuse to do what is asked: Stubborn as a mule. It is typically not used as a compliment, for the intended recipient is someone who has been told to change and will not comply. The psalmist is warning people to avoid such mulish behavior when it comes to sin.
Psalm 32 begins with a thanksgiving for forgiveness. “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven” (v. 1). It sounds like the Beatitudes, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:1).
This psalm reflects on how sin weighs a person down. It is like one’s bones wasting away. Unrepentant sin, as the Spirit convicts our soul, gnaws and festers. When we repair our relationship with God, seeking forgiveness, we are restored. Blessed.
Forgiveness doesn’t come easy—asking for it, that is. We are naturally stubborn. Our pride wants to hold our ground and defend our ways. But the pulling from God and the weight of sin can be a painful experience. The psalmist tells us to give in.
There is, however, the need to ensure that the commands given to us are reflective of what Christianity demands. Is it God asking us to change? Who is pulling on our reins?
Our society is wrestling with issues of cultural religiosity, where “doing the Christian thing” is more akin to following club rules. Those who seek to retain power in the “club of cultural Christianity” see all resistance as mulish (and sinful) unrepentance. They hold the reins of some people asking them to follow without question. This is not what this psalm is saying.
Being obedient to God is not the same as following anyone who dons the title “Christian.” Mules are stubborn but they are not necessarily dumb. They often refuse when they perceive the situation is dangerous.
Who is holding your reins? Who is pulling you along, shouting commands to follow? May it be God, and God alone.
Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting
In you, O Lord, have I taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness. — Psalm 31.1
– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime by Phyllis Tickle.
Read more: Temptation Has No Gender
Power, wealth, indulgence, sexuality…nothing escapes the corruption of sin and no gender is exempt from responsibility.
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