Psalm 138
138 I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.
3 In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.
4 All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O Lord, when they hear the words of thy mouth.
5 Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the Lord: for great is the glory of the Lord.
6 Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly: but the proud he knoweth afar off.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.
8 The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.
The TL/DR of this psalm is those who are close to god - or gods or spirit or divinity whatever you want to call it - live in reality.
While those who believe in the power of MAN - capitalism, patriarchy, white supremacy aka white superiority complex and all that comes with those things (violence, racism, misogyny, wealth hoarding, xenophobia, homophobia, hustle culture, etc) - live in a world of fantasy, a false reality.
Yahweh = Source, source of creation, source of spirit, source of divinity, source of all
Holy Spirit = the Movement of Source, creation in action, fulfilment of our callings
The works of your own two hands are how the holy spirit - spirits, spirit, the universe, source, whatever - how they move through you.
Cleaning, cooking, crafting, creating, channeling, diving. Caring for yourself, for your temple, your body, your home, your partner or partners, your loved ones. These are all the works of your hands.
When you are responding to the calls of your spirits, the works of your hands are divine.
When you are responding to the calls of the world MAN - the works of your hands may become supportive of or complicit with distraction and destruction.
Through this Psalm, Spirit is also reminding us that Spirit requires effort from us to do work for us.
“All the kings of the earth will give you thanks, Yahweh...Yes they will sing of the ways Yahweh, for great is Yahweh’s glory.” → this praise is akin to ritual, to prayer, to petition.
Our power, the power of our two hands, the power of the divine moving through us, strengthens and grows with discipline, dedication, consistency, commitment. Commitment to our spirits, commitment to listening to the requests of the divine.
What does discipline with spirit look like?
Prayer, meditation, ritual, sitting in nature, working with plants, refreshing our altars, visiting our dead, making the sacrifices we are called upon to make.
It can be anything that feels right for you, but it must be done with consistency. Whether that is every day, every week, every month.
Not every form of communion with spirit will call for the same type of commitment. Listen to your guides.
Spirituality is most effective when it becomes a healthy habit, or better yet, a healthy set of habits, that are integrated into your life, that evolve and growth with you. Building habits requires - attention, energy, and commitment.
You hear me speaking about commitment to cleansing practices often. Commitment to protection practice is just as important!
David says “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you will revive me. You will stretch forth your hand against the wrath of my enemies. Your right hand will save me.”
We walk through the world of the White Euro-Centric Cis-Male, that is the trouble we walk in the midst of. The energy of violence,oppression, greed, apathy, distraction is what is prevalent.
The energies we seek - of protection, of divine fluidity, of kindness, justice, peace - are rarely flowing freely all around us, and that is by design. We must align ourselves with the energy we want to draw in, and for it to work long term, we must align ourselves with that energy daily.
In my practice, I call protection over myself, my home, my loved ones, my communities, and the most vulnerable people within them. I encourage you to do the same. Because what better way to attract the energies we seek than by using our connection with spirit for goodwill?
Action Prompt
I encourage you to discover your routine spiritual protection practice.
Support that daily practice by creating a protective talisman or keepsake that is with you always.
Your talisman can be something you already have - a necklace or ring you wear daily, a stone or spiky cactus by the front door, a wire-wrapped crystal on your keychain.
It could be a rosary your grandmother carried or your dad's old pocket knife. The “what” only needs to be special to you, and special doesn't need to mean “expensive.”
Talismans can be worn on the body or be kept in important places in the home or in your vehicle.
Use ritual to activate your talismans and for when you have greater needs or specific petitions.