The books of Psalms is my favourite book in the whole Bible; like Dietrich Bonhoeffer, I can say ‘I am reading the Psalms daily, as I have done for years. I know them and love them more than any other book in the Bible.’ I can’t remember when I first discovered the potency of these prayers and songs, though I still love it when I hear a new song and find myself immersed through the creativity of others in a new way of singing these precious words. I think the ‘raw honesty and detailed thoroughness’ of the Psalms (Eugene Peterson’s memorable description) were the things which drew me first of all and which keep me finding new things in them.

I find in this collection of prayers and songs an integrity and honesty which have shaped my life. There is no pretence in the Psalms. Many people are shocked by the imprecatory psalms (Ps 137:9 perhaps being the most notorious verse!), appalled by the vindictiveness and spite they find there. I am not shocked, for I know my own heart, and it is a relief to find far-from-perfect people voicing their complaints, anger, frustration and bitterness to God. The Psalms often begin in complaint and misery (I identify with Ps 56:8 very much!), but show a pathway to praise and adoration that restores faith and perspective. The thing that draws me most, however, is this sense that even if God feels distant, even if I am angry with Him for how He is running the universe, even if I can find no reason to love Him, the Psalms show me that honest communication is better than dishonest pretence. Every gamut of emotion is expressed in the Psalms and God still remains majestic, loving, holy in it all. The Psalms provide, therefore, a framework and backbone for my wandering heart. They keep me tethered to the reality of God and regularly expose the sinfulness of my own heart and wash me clean, soaked and scrubbed white in the laundry of God’s Word.

As we being to study the book of Psalms in 2017 in our Bible studies, this is no theoretical exercise of erudition to gain information and learn ways of manipulation (the languages we use in everyday life, describing and persuading, the languages of lists and advertising rhetoric.) It’s an immersion into prayer as people have done for centuries. Read the Psalms each day and see what God says to you through them. Use the Psalms to speak to God, especially when you’ve run out of things to say. Don’t talk to God in remote ways, but in real, personal, everyday language. Read the Psalms in a different version, perhaps, to capture something of the immediacy and freshness of the Scriptures. Listen to songs that have these words in them so that you can sing God’s word. And then come to pray these Psalms corporately, to study together, to learn from each other. When we do this, we will be changed, for God’s Word is sharper than any double-edged sword, sharper than the surgeon’s scalpel, working in us to expose, reveal, transform and revolutionise us.

Genetics is a controversial area of science, particularly when it comes to manipulation of genes to cure diseases. The recent decision to allow a new technique preventing mitochondrial diseases by creating a “three-parent baby” — a child in which the vast majority of DNA comes from the mother and father and a small amount of DNA comes from a female donor – is one example of the disquiet and unease which advances in science can often bring to us as we battle prejudice, fear and ignorance and work through difficult ethical and theological issues.

When we gaze at a new baby, we often look for resemblances to their parents (my granddaughter has my son’s face shape and blue eyes and her mother’s nose shape and lips) and hope that they will possess the ‘best’ of their combined genes. The 1997 film ‘Gattaca’ shows us an alarming picture of the future, however, painting a vision of a future society driven by eugenics where potential children are conceived through genetic manipulation to ensure they possess the best hereditary traits of their parents and others (the ‘in-valids’ conceived naturally through ‘faith’ births) condemned to a lifetime of menial work.

The main character, Vincent, is an ‘in-valid’ who dreams of being an astronaut, a dream he can only fulfil by subterfuge and deceit (essentially buying the DNA of a ‘valid’ person who has been disabled in an accident.) The film explores the idea of destiny and aspiration, with characters in Gattaca continually battling both with society and with themselves to find their place in the world and who they are destined to be according to their genes.

Michael W. Smith’s song ‘Place In This World‘ also explores this theme of finding our place in the world, but this is a very different thing when we realise God has plans and purposes for us.

‘The wind is moving
But I am standing still;
A life of pages
Waiting to be filled.

A heart that’s hopeful,
A head that’s full of dreams,
But this becoming
Is harder than it seems

Feels like I’m
Looking for a reason
Roamin’ through the night to find
My place in this world,
My place in this world.
Not a lot to lean on;
I need your light to help me find
My place in this world,
My place in this world.’ (‘Place In This World’, Michael W. Smith)

In the film, Vincent ‘exceeds expectations’ because he refuses to let himself be defined by his biological genes and the ‘probabilities’ these imply. He knows how to pursue his goals and become more than others expect him to be. Eph 1:11-12 in the Message version says, ‘It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.‘ We live for His glory, not defined by our socio-economic backgrounds or our genetics or our intelligence or anything other than His love for us and the purposes He is working out in everything and everyone.

Rend Collective’s song ‘Your Royal Blood’ reminds us of the victory which Jesus, the King of Kings, won for us at Calvary:

‘Your blood will never lose its power.
Your blood will never lose.
Your victory will stand forever
Your blood will never lose.

This was won upon the cross;
This was written on his scars.
This has made us conquerors.
Nothing but Your royal blood,
Nothing but Your royal blood.’

As we took Communion, we reflected on the fact that normally, a king asks his people to sacrifice their lives for him and for the greater good of the country. Christ. however, sacrificed His own life for us. Eph 2:13 reminds us that this sacrifice brought us near to God and Heb 9:14 reminds us that the blood of Christ is able to cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so we may serve the living God. We can never thank God enough for all He has done for us.

‘To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.‘ (Rev 1:5-6)

As part of our family service on ‘Royal Rulers’, we had a quiz all about royalty. Three teams had to answer 50 questions about ‘royal links.’

The Crown Jewels had to be identified:

‘Royal’ animals had to be named (King Charles spaniels):

Royal residences had to be identified (Buckingham Palace was recognised, but not all the others!):

Others were much harder to identify (such as royal jelly, the Royal Mint and a variety of royal crests):

However, we even had our own taste of royalty, for Eileen (affectionately known as ‘the Queen’ to many at church) had her own crown to wear (a Christmas present from Mark!)

Despite being the 2nd Sunday of the month, tonight was our family service, looking at the theme of ‘Royal Rulers’. This Sunday is the celebration of Epiphany, traditionally associated with the arrival of the Magi. It is not certain if these were ‘kings’ as some of the carols imply, but certainly, they came to worship one ‘born king of the Jews.’ (Matt 2:2)

God’s plan for Israel was that He should be their king, ruling over them in justice and guiding them through the prophets. There came a time, however, when the elders of Israel summoned Samuel and demanded a human king so they could be like all the other nations. (1 Sam 8:4-5) Samuel was hugely disappointed by this request, but God warned the people of the consequences of this demand (it’s sometimes not wise to have God grant us all we ask!) Of the many kings of Israel, a relatively small number were godly and the people suffered from the selfishness and cruelty of many of the human rulers they appointed.

Is 9:6-7 reminds us that God is the only royal ruler we need: the government will be on His shoulders and He will reign on David’s throne for ever. This prophecy, fulfilled in the arrival of Jesus, reminds us that we serve a King who is the King of all Kings (see Rev 19:16). Despite the majesty and magnificence of the Godhead, however, He seeks to welcome us into His presence, asking us to open the door of our lives to Him so that He can rule in each one of us. (Rev 3:20) Jesus is the King who leads through servanthood, shedding His own precious blood to save us from our sins.

At our first service of the year at Cherry Tree Court, Garry spoke about walking into the unknown hand in hand with God. Weather forecasters try to give us an idea of what the weather will be like – 10 days ago, the BBC weather service said it would be bright and sunny today (not happening so far!) and even yesterday gave the temperature for this morning at 8 degrees (rather optimistic!) It’s notoriously difficult, even with modern technology, to predict the weather, and this lack of certainty about the future can often cause us problems, for we like to know what lies ahead and plan accordingly.

In 1939, King George VI, when facing the uncertainty of the 2nd World War, quoted from a poem by Minnie Louise Haskins:

‘And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied:
“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.
And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East.’

Ultimately, we live in a world of uncertainty, but God calls us to trust Him in every situation. Ignoring the change and uncertainty won’t stop reality from hitting us, nor can we plan for everything (see James 4:13-14). However, we can put our hand in God’s hand, secure that we have His double grip of safety (John 10:28-29). As Stuart Townend puts it, ‘no power of hell, no scheme of man/ Can ever pluck me from His hand.’ (‘In Christ Alone’) We are safe in God’s hands!