Archive for June 2008
“Lord, make me,” or prayers, desire, effort, and responsibility
Okay, I couldn’t not write about this week’s prayer, specifically the first part:
Lord, make me have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name
While I respect the desire expressed in this prayer, I confess that I’m troubled by make me each time I read it. We recently sang a song at church that expressed a similar sentiment: […]
week of June 22
[Sorry I’m posting this so far into the week]
Lord, make me have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name, for you never fail to help and govern those whom you have set upon the sure foundation of your loving-kindness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
the surprise of justice and love
The prayer for the week offers all sorts of things to meditate on, but minister justice catches my attention. I’ve never had a good grasp of justice from a biblical perspective, in part because I’m not certain that what we mean by the word is always exactly what God means when He uses it.
Word geek that I am, I usually start with the dictionary when I have questions like this. Both just and justice have to do with right and moral behavior and fairness; the root comes from the Latin for law. And that’s where I get hung up: part of the good news of the gospel is that we don’t receive what the law demands for our sins — we don’t get justice; we instead receive mercy. And fairness doesn’t seem to be part of God’s plan. Yes, God is fair in that His standard is applied equally: all who come to Him for salvation receive it; He doesn’t apply it willy-nilly or according to whim. But fairness in the way that children mean it — “Mom, she got more than me! That’s not fair!” or “Dad, all my friends get to go. Why can’t I? You’re so unfair!” — the sense of fairness our kids desire (and if we are honest, we want it too) is rarely at work in the world.
week of June 15
Keep, O Lord, your household the Church in your steadfast faith and love, that through your grace each of us may proclaim your truth with boldness, and minister your justice with compassion; for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
something to laugh about
Solomon tells us that “a happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing” (Proverbs 17:22, AMP ). God undoubtedly has a sense of humor; we need only look at some of the animals He created (it’s hard not to smile at the sight of a hippo, a monkey, or a puppy). Or think of some of the married couples you know: don’t you think God was smiling at the wedding as He looked ahead to the interaction of the wildly different personalities that will be living together?
And as if often the case, medical science is proving the wisdom of Solomon’s Spirit-inspired words.
“The Prayer Appointed for the Week”
One of the things I love about The Divine Hours is that each of the three prayers for the day — morning, midday, and evening — includes “The Prayer Appointed for the Week.” These have been adapted from The Book of Common Prayer, and even after a couple of years of using The Divine Hours, I continue to be […]
Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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