Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Congratulations with the feast of the Resurrection of the Lord, as well as with the day of the memory of all the Holy Hierarchs of Moscow!

Last week we discussed the 5th psalm, which is the first of the three that are read during the First Hour. Today let us continue the same topic and look at the second psalm of the First Hour. The understandable, thought-provoking, and somewhat melancholy, but still full of hope 89th (90) psalm, ‘Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations,’ is unique in that it was composed by the Holy Prophet Moses the God-seer (or, as the title of this psalm calls him, the Man of God) not long before his death, after the Jews had been wаndering the desert for forty years. This hymn can be divided into three main sections. In the first part, Moses describes God’s majesty. In the second section he focuses his gaze on man and on his insignificance when compared to his Creator. A person’s short lifespan and his sinfulness, which leads to God’s wrath coming down upon him, are noted by the author. In the third part of the psalm, Saint Moses prays that the Lord have mercy on us, grant us wisdom, fill the days of our lives with gladness, and bless our undertakings. This 89th psalm, just like the 5th, is a wonderful morning prayer.

Although it seems to me that very few of us regularly read the First Hour in the morning, it would probably be good to think about the three main sections of the 89th psalm in the morning, on a daily basis. Naturally, there is no better beginning to the day than with prayer, remembering the greatness of our Creator. If we do not forget our Lord in the morning, then there is hope that He will not abandon us throughout the rest of the day. Of course, before we begin our day it is important for us to also remember our own limits, human weaknesses, and sins. We are not gods who can control all aspects of our lives, but are like “a sleep: in the morning (we) are like grass which groweth up. In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth.” Perhaps if we do not forget this, it will be easier to preserve spiritual calmness throughout the day. Without a doubt we cannot forget to add prayer to our musings about the magnificence of God and human limitations, for God can do anything for us. To be convinced of this, one can remember the life of the author of our psalm. If you do not know about Moses, open up the Old Testament and read about him in the Book of Exodus.

Dear Brothers and Sisters, let us endeavour to pray more often to God with the words of the 89th psalm: “Establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.” Perhaps if do not forget this, the Lord will not only settle us in His Heavenly Kingdom in the future life, but will also grant us both wisdom and joy here on earth.

priest Alexis