Daily Devotion for November 10, 2010
Prayers
Scripture
Lord's Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.
Prayer for God's Power in Our Lives
Eternal spirit, giver of life, bearer of our pain and wellspring of all love, source of all that is and all that shall be, father and mother of us all, loving God, in whom is heaven: May the hallowing of your name echo through the universe. May the way of your justice be followed by the people of the world. May your heavenly will be done by all beings in your creation. May your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our hope, and may earth see your kingdom.
With the bread we need for today, feed us; in the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us; in times of temptation and test, strengthen us; from trials too great to endure, spare us; from the grip of all that is evil, free us. For your reign is the glory of the power that is love, now and forever.
Prayer for Family and Friends
Blessed are You, loving Father, For all your gifts to us. Blessed are You for giving us family and friends To be with us in times of joy and sorrow, To help us in days of need, And to rejoice with us in moments of celebration.
Father, We praise You for Your Son Jesus, Who knew the happiness of family and friends, And in the love of Your Holy Spirit. Blessed are you for ever and ever.
Benediction
Finally, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, let me think about these things. What I have learned and received, let me do; and the God of peace be with us all.
Think of the day ahead in terms of God with you, and visualize health, strength, guidance, purity, calm confidence, and victory as the gifts of His presence.
Psalm 124:6-8
We have escaped like a bird from the fowler�s snare; the snare has been broken, and we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Matthew 5:1-2,5
Meekness
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth."
Notes on the Scripture
This is one of the most astonishing passages in the New Testament to me. Christ often told us that pride is a sin, and that we should try to be humble and ask for forgiveness when we do act pridefully. But here, he does not say that the humble will go to heaven; he says that the meek — the very humblest among us — will inherit the earth.
This is exactly the opposite of what life seems to teach us. Great pride seems to be a prerequisite to earthly wealth and power, for the most part, while humility is something we characterize with weakness and poverty. So, should we seek humility in order to gain earthly benefits as well as the ultimate benefit of living to serve God?
I don't know. It may be that the huge egos we so often see among the rich, the famous, and the powerful, came after their earthly success and that their earlier lives were characterized by humility. "Pride goes before a fall" certainly seems to characterize a lot of situations. But we have also seen prideful people succeed at earthly enterprises. Again, I just don't know what to make of it.
The answer I make to myself is: Don't worry about it. Christ told us to live a life of humility simply out of love for him. If their is an earthly benefit, or not, is a secondary question. The less we worry about the treasure we lay up on earth, and the more we worry about the treasure we lay up in heaven, the better off we will be in our spirit. We don't need to worry about the meaning of this passage; whether it is meant literally or metaphorically, or exactly what will happen to the earth after our death, because we know that we strive for total humility to enrich our spirit anyway. Christ has told us not to worry about tomorrow, and so we will do as he has told us.
