If you seek peace or realize the need for humility…

A short reflection on Psalm 131.

King David, as powerful and esteemed as he was, had a great understanding of the need for humility and the peace provided by God.

No, David was not perfect, he was a mere human like the rest of us, but even through his brokenness he always turned towards God.

David exemplified this through his version of a “short-form" Psalm, Psalm 131. While only three verses in length, it provides us with a perspective we all require.

Psalm 131 reads as follows:

O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore.

David orients his heart on the Lord, humbly resigning himself as a mere mortal who requires the peace and grace of God.

David prays to have the mind of a child, trading the complexities of typical adulthood for the perspective and worries of a young child; a child that is completely dependent on their parents for every waking need.

Whether you’re religious or not, we all can learn from David’s example. We are all faced with the complexities, anxieties, and struggles of life, in desperate need of peace.

Whether you’re a devout Christian, on the fringes of faith, or in opposition to religion altogether, I challenge you to seek humility, to seek ways to adopt the mind of a child.

Let go of control and find peace, that’s my prayer for you.

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