Justin Appel

Dear Friends,

When hardships and storms arise in life—as they inevitably will for us all—few texts can express the existential crisis quite like the Psalms. Take one of today’s readings, Psalm 109, for instance. The author of this psalm decries the injustice he feels at the hand (or perhaps, “the mouth”) of the deceitful, those who “fight against me without cause” and who “repay evil for good.”

The psalmist expresses a kind of cataplexy of imprecations, calling down maledictions on the enemy for all the ways they failed to show mercy and “persecuted the poor and needy.”

After this outburst, there follows a prayer of particular beauty, with much for us to absorb and incorporate into our prayers:

“But you, O Lord my God,
oh, deal with me according to your Name;
for your tender mercy’s sake, deliver me.
For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
I have faded away like a shadow when it lengthens;
I am shaken off like a locust…

Let them know that this is your hand,
that you, O Lord, have done it.
They may curse, but you will bless…”

The psalmist teaches us the value of these qualities in prayer:

Humility—recognizing one’s subservience to God and speaking accordingly. Saints like Ephram the Syrian teach us that without humility it is impossible to live a proper life.

Trust—believing that God’s will “governs all” and that his purpose will be achieved, even through suffering. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5)

Love—Saint Paisios of Mt. Athos referred to philiotimo as a “distillation of goodness; the radiant love” of a humble person, one without self-absorption, and “with a heart full of gratitude to God and to his fellow man.”

“I will give great thanks to the Lord with my mouth;
in the midst of the multitude will I praise him;
Because he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save his life from those who would condemn him.”

Yours in Christ,

—Justin