Intentional Faith

Evening Prayer

Lord, remember your church throughout the world,
–that your people may dwell in peace.
Lord, remember those we have met today,
–that they may receive your gifts.
Lord, remember all families,
–that they may live in harmony.
Lord, remember the sick and the dying,
–that they may have your joy.

Morning Prayer

I lift my heart to you, O Lord,
to be strengthened for this day.
Be with me in all I do, my God;
guide me in all my ways.

I will carry some burdens today;
some trials will be mine.
So I wait for your help, Lord,
lest I stumble and fall.

I will do my work, Father,
the work begun by your Son.
He lives in me and I in him;
may his work today be done. Amen.

Lord of Hosts, you understand the heat of battle and have witnessed the war of man from the beginning. You know what makes a faithful soldier and the sacrifice they must make to serve well. Today, we lift those who stand in harm’s way and desire to keep their faith. Give them your presence in those places where You are overlooked. Amen.

Thought for Today’s Text

Unlike most other biblical prophets, here Isaiah is filled not with warnings over wrongdoing, but with encouragement to reevaluate Judah’s past and future. Composed for exiled people in the mid-sixth century BC, just as the international tide is turning, just as the possibility of returning to the broken city of Jerusalem is reopening, Isaiah soars with inviting poetry of hope, offering to pave the way homeward with confidence and expectancy.

Today’s Text

Isaiah 43:1-7 (NIV)
1 But now, this is what the LORD says– he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
3 For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life.
5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west.
6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth–
7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”

“Lemony Snicket” (Daniel Handler), 21st century
“There are times to stay put, and what you want will come to you, and there are times to go out into the world and find such a thing for yourself.”

Thought on Today’s Text

When were times that you felt you were seeking God in your life? Was it only at times of need or suffering, or was it an intellectual search, or did it come from a deep, personal hunger for meaning? How faithful were you, and diligent, in the search? How do you think people seek God today? What are the paths and things and methods that help people “find” their way to God? How might the star in the Matthew reading represent nature as it “points” to God? The wise men find the star alone insufficient as a guide, and they innocently turn to one king (a lesser, and evil one) for guidance to the real King. Fear is the response, not just from the powerful, threatened king, the “power-that-has-been,” but from the religious establishment, and from the entire town (“all Jerusalem”). According to Sancken, this little story shows “the best and the worst of human nature spring forth in response to God’s gift of revelation,” and she reminds us that just as a new baby brings upheaval to a house, “the birth of God incarnate promises to turn the whole world upside down and forge a new reality.” No wonder some people trembled in fear!

Today’s Scripture

Matthew 2:1-12 (NIV)
1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem
2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.
4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born.
5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'”
7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.
8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.
10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.
11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.
12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Marilynne Robinson, Gilead, 21st century
“Grace has a grand laughter in it.”

Today’s Scripture

Ephesians 3:1-12 (NIV)
1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles–
2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you,
3 that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly.
4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ,
5 which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets.
6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.
7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power.
8 Although I am less than the least of all God’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,
9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.
10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
11 according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.