psalm 22

i think that one of the most poignant moments in the final hours of the life of the Savior was His exclamation on the cross, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (matt 27:46) i've heard it said that that was the moment when His Father withdrew the comforting companionship of His Spirit, so that Jesus would actually know what it felt like to be totally alone, the equivalent of having sinned to the point of losing the spirit of God completely.

a few months ago i picked up an old issue of the ensign that was lying on a table next to me because an article featured on the cover sounded interesting. and it was. then i flipped around and read a brief thought that was on the final page of the january 2011 issue.

the article noted that those words that Jesus spoke--"My God, my God, why hast thou forsake me"--are scripture; the opening verse of psalm 22, to be precise. Jesus often quoted scripture throughout His life and, if He's anything like me and my friends (and i like to think so), His reference of the first verse alluded to the following verses as well:

1. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?
 2. O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.
 3. But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.
 4. Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them.
 5. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded.

psalms 22:1-5

the verses cry out for God, admitting that they feel they have been forgotten or ignored. but then they remember and acknowledge that God is God, and that includes His character that He will always be with us and watch over us and help us. the next few verses reaffirm this explicitly, citing that those before them trusted in God and things worked out. and so the same must be true now.

and that's good stuff to remember. but what really makes this interesting is that Jesus, in a time of extreme difficulty and struggle, was turning to the scriptures as a source of strength. in essence, He was re-reading some of His favorite verses to remind Himself of what He already knew.

i do that, too, sometimes.

the little things

the last time i watched the royal tenenbaums was when i was in utah for mark's wedding. sariah and i watched it on my ipad and it was as good as when we first watched it together eight years ago.
actually, i think i love the movie more as time goes by.

yes, it's a great story about love and frustrations and family and forgiveness, but there are a lot of movies like that. so why does this one stand out for me? because of all of the little things about the way it tells its story, and even (especially?) those things that seem almost trivial but actually make the movie everything that it is.

• the way the kids run away to the museum that is a total homage to my childhood book from the mixed-up files of mrs. basil e. frankweiler
• the music from a charlie brown Christmas playing in the background as margot leaves raleigh's house
• dudley kneeling down to hand eli his shoe after the car crash
• the little dalmatian mice occasionally in the background
• that there are bullet wounds in the characters' costumes at the end of margot's birthday play
• that richie takes his shoes off during the tennis game meltdown
• dudley pointing out that the gypsy cab "has a dent in it."
• "and another dent here. and another one here."
• the instrumental version of hey jude (my favorite beatles song) playing over the introduction
• the faint sound of a bird screech and richie looking around for it before eli answers the door
• the moment when richie watches margot step off the bus to meet him at the station
• the line of men in white uniforms walking out behind him in slow motion while he watches her
• the way that pagoda walks over to the balcony as soon as eli leave the room and says "there he goes."
• that dudley has an extremely acute sense of hearing and absolute cannot tell time
• the way that etheline gets so vulnerable when henry shares his feelings for her
• the barrette in margot's hair

i could go on.

and yet i think it's even something more than all of those things, but that's the best i can figure out so far.

intervention

i was out for a walk earlier this evening. a guy was unloading a cooler from his pickup truck on the other side of the street but said "howdy" to me as i passed. i said "howdy" back.

i thought that was really cool of him. and yet, not uncommon at all around here.

a little while later, i was sitting under a streetlight, talking on my phone, and a girl stopped by in her car and asked if i was ok.

i was but yeah, good people here.

* * *

i'm at that spot once again where i have several different blog posts simmering inside of me, but whenever i sit down to write one, it's not ready quite yet.