So will I sing a psalm to thy name for ever and ever: that I may pay my vows from day to day. (Psalm 60:9 DR)
One nearly infallible way of determining what is important to someone is determining what they do on a daily basis.
It might be something they like (such as a leisure activity or exercise), something necessary (like eating) or even something unliked (such as a monotonous yet necessary job). Even something as simple as brushing one’s teeth becomes a habit after enough consistent use, to the point that it becomes second nature. In fact, it can feel unsettling to—for whatever reason—skip the things that we do every day.
For myself I have been going for multiple daily walks for years, such that people around my neighborhood comment about it, for better or worse! I also tend to go around the same time or times every day. However, on days where something comes up that precludes a walk—whether traveling, weather, sickness, etc.—I tend to feel off for the entire day, as this thing that is such a consistent part of my life is suddenly absent. It is, in many ways, like missing a meal and feeling hunger pangs, for routine and consistency in some respect undergird what matters to us and provide the framework in which that importance is externally manifested and internally solidified.
This is partially why Sunday Mass is an obligation, not because God needs us but because we need Him. The fragility of our nature as weakened by sin makes us slothful in spiritual things. We are spiritual beings but also have an animal nature, and like the animals we train we also need both positive and negative reinforcement. We need all kinds of motivations to remember God throughout the week and throughout the day, which is why things like weekly Mass obligations and daily devotions such as the Rosary help us to find those touchpoints of remembrance and recollection when otherwise we might forget God altogether in the midst of the business of life.
These things form habits in us, and while we can never put spiritual growth on autopilot, we also need to develop within ourselves consistent patterns of prayer and penance that grease the skids, as it were, for prayer and contemplation. In any aspect of our lives the things that really matter to us get the focus of our time and energy, even if they are inconvenient or hard.
When one first starts some sort of exercise regimen it is very difficult and painful, and takes a lot of devotion and hard work and mental discipline to get over those initial hurdles. But with enough diligence it becomes not exactly easier, but one becomes more acclimated to it. The strain and effort required becomes more expected but also begins to pay off eventually, which makes the effort worth it. With time it becomes second nature—even if not easy—and one will feel a “loss” if something interrupts that since what has become so customary has also through that familiarity proven itself to be so important.
The Psalmist in this final concluding verse looks forward to the end in which he will praise the Lord forever. However, there seems to be an interesting aspect to the parallelism here, for he begins by stating his intent to praise the Lord forever, but then seemingly contracts that into paying his vow to the Lord from day to day. In some ways this can seem like putting the cart before the horse, as it were—it seems more like it is the paying of the vows day to day that would lead to him eventually praising the Lord forever, rather than as it seems to be framed here, almost backwards.
However, there is a proper order here, as it must be remembered that this Psalm began as unto the End, which is our Lord Jesus Christ. He thus gives voice in this Psalm to the Church which is the mystical Body of Christ, united to Him as closely as body and soul. For the Church there is an eschatological dimension in which the future glory of the Bride of Christ is already present because of this union with Christ. St. Paul uses similar language:
But God (who is rich in mercy) for his exceeding charity wherewith he loved us even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together in Christ (by whose grace you are saved) and hath raised us up together and hath made us sit together in the heavenly places, through Christ Jesus. That he might shew in the ages to come the abundant riches of his grace, in his bounty towards us in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7 DR)
Those who belong to Christ Jesus are already seated with Him in heavenly places by virtue of their union with Him and partake of the divine nature (cf. 2 Peter 1:4) thusly, although we still groan and labor in this vale of tears (cf. Romans 8:23; Philippians 3:20-21). We thus wait for that which is promised to those who remain united to Christ as branches to the vine (cf. John 15:4-5).
The Psalmist therefore captures this reality in this closing passage. It is in view of the End that he pays his vows from day to day, which means not only on a daily basis (although it certainly means that!) but from these temporal days to those of eternity mentioned in the first half of this passage:
Render to Him your vows from day unto day. What is, render to Him your vows from day unto day? From this day unto that day. Continue to render vows in this day, until you come to that day: that is, “He that shall have continued even unto the end, the same shall be saved.” [Matthew 24:13] (St. Augustine, Expositions on the Psalms, 60, 9.)
Not having a clear idea of what I wanted to do for this animation, I decided to go a bit more abstract. I found some nice colorful textures and applied Stretch to create the upward flow of the streaks. I then applied Wave Warp to the background for some movement and then Pixel Sorter 3 so as to crate the streaky waves. I had the notion that it kind-of-sort-of feels like audio waveforms to go along with the “singing” aspect of this, but make of it what you will.
Enjoy.
So will I sing a psalm to thy name for ever and ever: that I may pay my vows from day to day.
(Psalm 60:9 DR)
View a higher quality version of this gif here: