"he crowns the poor"

Concord, MI

One of the other psalms I chant every Sunday (Ps 149) has these favorite lines:

For the Lord takes delight in his people.
He crowns the poor with salvation.

Saturday morning I went with Kevin to his men's bible study. Good discussion. One of the passages we looked at was Matthew's version of the parable of the sower. Someone mentioned struggling with the "thorns" and another man said that they are an unavoidable part of this life. But I questioned that. Jesus describes the thorns as "cares of the world and the delight in riches," and he taught that we ought to avoid those thorns:

"Sell your possessions, and give alms; provide yourselves with purses that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys." (Lk 12.33)

And Jesus himself avoided the lure of money and possessions, and also avoided positions of power (such as when they wanted to make him king) with all the "cares of the world" that those roles lay on us.

I also got to have several conversations with Kim and Kevin about marriage; they have led marriage retreats and have lots of good insights. But Heather and I have the added challenge of a life of poverty and working with the poor.

We got a little sign of God's support, though. I got to Ann Arbor a week early, then Heather got invited to the Mennofolk folk music festival next Sunday--in Michigan, right near my walking route. And my brother Glen offered me a ride on his way to Chicago yesterday. So this morning I started walking from Jackson, MI, and should be able to make it to the festival by Sunday. An unexpected mid-summer rendezvous.