4Blessed are those who dwell in Your house; they are ever praising You. 5Blessed are those whose strength is in You, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. 6As they pass through the Valley of Baka, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. 7They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion. (Psalm 84:4-7)
The new year is always a time to think about the road ahead. It’s a time of transition and new beginnings. A time to consider how to leverage all the experiences pain, and growth of the previous year for the next one. What if you spent 2022 truly dwelling in the house of the Lord (v. 4)? Blessed are those who get comfy and make nests and settle in with the Lord. What if like the swallow, you find a place in God where you can settle in and stay awhile? What if you applied the dwelling muscles we were all forced to strengthen in 2021 for good in 2022? The very next verse in our text today talks about what at first might appear like a really different charge – pilgrimage. The psalm teaches us to sing: “Blessed are those whose hearts are set on a pilgrimage!” If you’re unfamiliar with what a pilgrimage is or if it makes you think of colonization, I get it. Know this: a pilgrimage is spiritual journey—like a quest for meaning. The Bible is filed with pilgrim stories and pilgrimage themes. Consider Abraham leaving his home to search for the land God tells him about or the Israelites wandering in the desert in search of the Promised Land. In both cases, pilgrimage holds themes of hardships and care, search for promise and an assurance to trust because God is present. There’s even a whole set of Psalms (120-124) thought to be sung as pilgrims made their way up to Jerusalem. The fact that these verses about pilgrimage come right after “Blessed are those who dwell in Your house” makes me wonder about the connection between our dwelling with God and our capacity to take meaningful journeys. And it makes me wonder about the connection between dwelling, pilgrimage, and home. What if we are most ready for the quests that matter most to us when we have settled in and gotten comfortable in the house of the Lord? And, what if because we were forced to spend so much time learning to dwell last year, we’re readier than we’ve ever been for a pilgrimage in 2022? So many major events happen over the course of a year. Who knows what 2022 will bring? It could be the year you start a new job or finally launch your business. Or it could be the year God invites you to mature as a follower of Jesus Christ by undergoing a pruning process. It could be the year you meet new people that you will know for the rest of your life. Think about it, you really don’t know what this year will hold in your life or your work. So, why not, consider the unknown as an opportunity to follow God on the path of pilgrimage: to wrestle and wonder, build trust in God, and hope for all the good grace that might be? On any pilgrimage we embark, we are invited to make God’s mission of redemption and restoration in the world our North Star. For a pilgrimage is about us, but it is never about just us. Consider what or who God might be asking you to be attentive or responsive to at the start of this near year. The answer will inevitably lead, in same way, to something new in the journey that will be 2022. In the beginning of this new year, 2022, I want to invite you to make a list or journal about your hopes for 2022. Offer them to God aloud and then make space to listen to God. Sit in silence or go on a walk, and ask God to speak to your hopes for this year. Gracious Father, thank You for a new year and the new life that comes through Your Son Jesus. Help me to hope for the things You hope for and help me to follow You more closely, as I look to You as my North Star. May this year be indeed a holy journey, in which I grow to listen and love You and all those You place in my life. Lord Jesus, You have given all to me. To You, Lord, I return it. Comments are closed.
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