on August 3, 2025 by TaeHun Yoon

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Thanksgiving for Vindication: “It is good to give thanks to the Lord…”

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Preparation for Sacred Reading

This morning, I woke earlier than usual —
still tired, my sleep interrupted.

As I sat quietly, I listened to the choir’s offertory:
“Pura Vida (Enjoy Life!)” —
the anthem of our mission team to Costa Rica.

The Spanish lyrics danced beyond my lips,
and the melody moved faster than I could follow.
Yet I joined in — not with perfection,
but with a spirit open to joy.

The team returned glowing —
changed, joyful, blessed.
Today’s worship was not a routine.
It was a living testimony.

Later, I watched my wife, my son, and his fiancée leave for Atlanta,
the house fell into stillness.
After a simple sandwich dinner,
I sat in my usual chair,
and took three slow, deep breaths.

“Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.” (Psalm 95:1)

Alone, I softly sang:
“In the Garden”

“And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
and He tells me I am His own…”

Even in the quiet, I was not alone.
Then I whispered a prayer from Rubem Alves:

“Gracious God, make me sensitive to all the evidences of Your goodness…
and feel free to live intensely and happily the life You have given me.”

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Lectio (Reading the Word)

I opened to Psalm 92 —
a psalm for the Sabbath, a temple morning song.

I read it again. Then again — in different translations.
I imagined priests offering lambs and pouring wine
at daybreak in the holy courts.

Words rose from the page like incense:

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord…”
“To declare Your steadfast love in the morning…”
“The righteous flourish like the palm tree…”

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Meditatio (Meditation)

I let the Word sink in.
My heart spoke back:

“Lord, let me wake with You in my mind.
Let You be the rudder of my life.”

I lingered with these verses:

“They still bear fruit in old age;
they are ever full of sap and green.”

There is no aging in Your Spirit.
Only growth.
Only ripening.
Only praise.

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Oratio (Prayer)

O Lord,
Replant me again in the courts of Your presence.
Root me where Your light can reach me.
Water me with grace.
Keep me fruitful —
even in my silver years.

Let my life proclaim:

“The Lord is righteous; He is my Rock.”

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Contemplatio (Silence and Rest)

Then came the silence.
No asking.
No striving.

Just stillness —
like a spring hidden beneath fallen leaves,
softly trickling, old but alive.

Worship became a mountain.
The Spirit, a stream.
And I?
I drank.

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Incarnatio (Embodiment of the Word)

Tears met memories.
I gave thanks —
for the road behind,
for mercies that shaped me,
for God’s quiet shaping hand.

Softly I chanted:

“Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling…”
Then again:
“Turn your eyes upon Jesus…”

And I did.
And I will.

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Operatio (Living It Out)

Today, I choose to follow His voice.
To give thanks in quiet Sabbaths
and bustling Sundays.

To sing — even if the notes escape me —
as long as the Spirit flows.

To rise each morning in prayer:

“Lord, be my Rock.
Lead me through valleys,
and bring me to green pastures.”

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord.”
And I will —Thanksgiving for Vindication: A Lectio Divina on Psalm 92: 1-15
as long as I have breath.