The text: Psalm 121 – NRSV
There is a particular point on northbound highway 191 as you leave Jackson, WY where the road ascends sufficiently so that, at last, one can see clearly what lies to the west. It is a moment of pure magic, and I will never forget my kids’ reactions when it happened almost 10 years ago now on our first trip to the most wondrous place of my childhood, Yellowstone. Seeing the Tetons for the first time, especially on a clear day, even more if you have only seen mountains that barely equal their foothills, can be a life-changing and intensely spiritual event. Being in the presence of raw majesty can, if we let it, profoundly correct our perspective. I cannot read this little jewel of a psalm without remembering such experiences. To me there is no psalm more beautiful than Psalm 121, no psalm more eloquent in its concise construction, no psalm more evocative of God’s nature. My advice is simple: memorize it. Take it with you. For the psalm is one of pilgrimage, encompassing the entire journey of a life of faith. What will you find when you look to the hills? It may be peace, it may be faith, or like Julie Andrew’s Maria, it may even be music. There is something about a mountain…
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