The Weary Traveler

The Weary Traveler

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, Nor the moon by night. The LORD will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The LORD will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.   Psalms 121

The 121^st Psalm is the psalm of the traveler. The author of the psalm was one of a band of pilgrims journeying to Jerusalem, there to worship God in His Holy Temple.

The journey would be crowded with dangers but also crowded with delight. They would be exposed to robbers, their path barred by enemies. There were long arid stretches of country to cross and the pitiless glare of the sun to be endured. There were the sick who needed to be cared for and the aged to be supported. But the trials and testing’s, difficulties and dangers of the way would soon be forgotten when the towers of the city came into sight.

At night sentries were set on the top of a neighboring hill to guard the encampment against sudden attacks from marauding bands of robbers. In our psalm we have some of the reflections of one of the pilgrims who, before entering his tent for the night, looked toward the hill and saw beside the sentry another guardian, the Lord who neither slumbers not sleeps; and who, more than a human sentry, can guard His people from diseases, from the strokes of the sun and from the perils of the way. It is such a situation which has fashioned this hymn of quite trust and confidence in all the wise providence of a wise and personal and powerful God.

As the pilgrim began his journey he fastened his eye upon his goal: “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills.” No doubt to which the hills he has referenced, are the hills upon which the city was built which rise to a height of 2400 feet above sea level. “As pilgrims travel through this barren land” let us ever look up, keeping our eyes fastened upon the goal.

The upward look is prerequisite to a noble and honorable life. It is only as we keep our eyes fastened upon the goal that we are inspired and encouraged to “keep on going on” even though the way is dull and drab, monotonous and seemingly meaningless. The medical student endures long hours in the classroom, at his desk, making hospital rounds and in the clinic because he beheld the ideal, the goal of becoming a doctor. A worthy goal produces personal resolution and persistent endurance.

One of the saddest conditions in all of human experience is to find oneself devoid of a worthy goal, a noble ambition, and an all consuming passion. What a pity to find oneself “drifting and dreaming along the stream of life.” This robs one of all sense of purpose and motivation. The goal of the Christian traveler whether he be young or old, poor or rich, a blue or white collared worker, in good or poor health is to “glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.” We have only one life to live and all that ultimately counts is what we do in the service of our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. As he “set his face steadfastly to go to Jerusalem,” the place of doing God’s will even though it meant personal suffering and self sacrifice, so must we. Paul said, “I will keep going on toward the mark of the prize of the upward call of God in Christ.” The psalmist said, “I will life up mine eyes unto the hills.” Let us reaffirm, “I will live up to the standard that God set when He called me in Christ.”

As the psalmist looked unto the hills which symbolize the noble task to be accomplished, the worthy ideals to be realized and the praiseworthy goal to be attained, he asked a question: “From whence cometh my help?” notice this is a question, he does not affirm that his help comes from the hills. The goals of life may inspire us, they may deliver us form dull monotony, but they cannot give inner resolution nor that outward supply which is so vital to the realization of one’s goal. The psalmist affirms that such help comes “from the Lord who made heaven and earth.”

            A mighty fortress is our God, A bulwark never failing;

            Did we in our strength confide, Our striving would be losing.

A man is not stronger than that in which he trust. Trust in yourself and you are doomed to failure. Trust in God and you will become “more than a conqueror.” The foolish man says, “I can do all things.” The wise man confesses, “I can do all things THROUGH Christ who strengthens me.”

Last Sunday we referred to a recent address of the President of the United Sates before representatives of the new media gathered in Kansas City. He warned that America is nearing the decadence “which eventually destroys civilization. Then he continued, “I am convinced, however, that we have the vitality, I believe we have the courage, I believe we have the strength out through this heartland and across this nation that will see to it that America not only is rich and strong, but that it is healthy in terms of moral strength. I am convinced it is there.”

I, too, am convinced that it is there. We need this vitality, courage, strength and moral health that is latent within us. But we need more. We need a renewed recognition of and a renewed commitment to the truth expressed in the motto of our coins, “In God we trust.” We need God on our side, but more than this we need to be on God’s side. We need Christ interceding on behalf of our nation, but more than this we must be intermediaries for Him.

In days like these when our eyes are fixed more often upon the machines that man has made, the Gross National Produce that man has produced and upon the atomic power that we have released, we need to be reminded to fix our eyes upon God who is the source of all power.

All too often our religion is man centered. It has marked our earnest efforts, our tremendous activity and our desire to conquer the forces of evil that would destroy. We need like the psalmist to be conscious of the problems that beset us; but also, like him, we need to be conscious of the power that is available to us. We need to lift our hands in prayer to grasp God, but more, we need to be aware of the strong arm of God stretched out to help us. Let us learn wherein lies the source of our strength, help and power. “It comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.” Let us rid ourselves of that subtle pride in man’s power to attain his worthy goals and noble ambitions.

Notice that God’s all powerful help is intensely personal. Many have said to me, “You pray for me. Your prayers carry more weight than mine.” The subtle implication in such a request is that God plays favorites. This is not so. We are all equal before God. His help is as readily available to one of His children as to another. “What He has done for others, He will do for you.”

It is a personal help which preserves us in “our going out and coming in.” He may not keep us in the way we want to be kept. He may not keep us from sorrow. He may not give us bodily deliverance. “What did God do for the martyr Stephen when he was being stoned to death?” asked an agnostic of Joseph Parker while he was still a youth. Parker replied, “He enabled Stephen to say, Lord lay not this sin to their charge.” God did not keep Stephen from stoning, but He kept him from the spirit of hate and a desire to retaliate. God keeps us and helps in that way which He, according to His divine wisdom, knows will minister to our greatest need.

It is a personal help which preserves the soul. Some have said t o me, “I would become a traveler in the way of Christ, if I believed I could hold out.” The plain fact is that none of us would come to the New Jerusalem, Zion the City of God in our own strength and ability. “The arm of flesh would fail us.” But, we have this confidant assurance, “He who has begun a good work in us will carry it on till it is finished in the Day of Christ Jesus.” We cannot “keep on going on.” “But God is able to keep us from falling.” It is the Savior who will keep us until the river of death rolls its waters at our feet and then he will bear us safely over.

This is the psalm of every believer. The world is not our home; we are on a pilgrimage to Heaven’s Promised Land. The journey may be long. The road may be filled with peril. But we are not alone. The Savior travels with us and He is able to make “all grace abound.” He will keep us until the river of death rolls its waters over our feet, then He will bear us safely over. “Comfort one another with these words.”

Dr. Robert W Kirkpatrick

First Presbyterian Church, Dade City, Florida  July 18, 1971