Rest is good. We’re taking a break from producing content over the summer. Enjoy this previously produced pattern and meditation.
With all the noise in the world, do you hear the voice of God? Your calendar tells you what to do, but do you remember who you are? Being comes before doing. This is a call to put first things first. Return to the Lord with this daily pattern of prayer and devotion. Set aside this time as a sanctuary. Find a space free of distraction and follow this pattern.
Invocation
I invite my Lord,
Jesus, you are the salvation of God, revealed to the entire world. One day every tribe and nation will call you Lord. But you are also my Savior. Remember your love and faithfulness to me. Amen.
Invitation Prayer
I invite my Lord,
O God, teach me the way of love. Grow me in the fruits of the Spirit. Shape my heart toward joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Confession
I come before God with a sober assessment of my life:
I, a poor sinner, plead guilty before God of all sins.
I have lived as if God did not matter and as if I mattered most.
My Lord’s name I have not honored as I should;
My worship and prayers have faltered.
I have not let His love have its way with me, and so my love for others
Has failed.
There are those whom I have hurt, and those whom I have failed to
help.
My thoughts and desires have been soiled with sin.
I am sorry for all of this and ask for grace. I want to do better.
Word: Psalm 98:1-3
“Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The Lord has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”
Meditation
Our God is a big God with big goals. In the beginning, he created the heavens and the earth – everything that is. In the end, when Jesus returns, he will rule over all things. As the Psalmist writes: “All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”
And Jesus’ plan for getting the word out about this salvation from God started with the twelve disciples (Luke 9). And then the seventy-two. (Luke 10). After the resurrection, it was 120 in the upper room at Pentecost (Acts 1-2). And by the end of that day it was 3,000 (Acts 2). Soon after that there were 5,000 believers (Acts 4). To Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. Through the centuries, across continents and hemispheres, all the way down to you and me.
And yet that same big God with big goals for the entire world, is also your Savior. In baptism, he claimed you as his own. He died and rose again to forgive your sins. And he sends you as his spokesperson to tell everyone who will listen of the marvelous things he has done for you.
Prayer for the World
- For my city, state, and country.
- For leaders: mayor, governor, president, congress.
- For those who serve the public: police officers, firefighters, teachers, first responders, medical personnel.
- For the nations of the world, for world leaders.
- For God to curb violence and evil, and to work peace among all peoples.
- For good government, good schools, good business.
- For justice, especially for the oppressed: minorities, immigrants and refugees, orphans, widows, the very young or unborn, the aged.
- For creation: for the care of land, air, wildlife, and sea.
Prayer
O God, you are the one, true Light. Grant me bravery in the face of darkness. I face the lion and furnace, spear and sword. Today there may be challenge, attack, temptation, or enemy. Let them incite in me an unshakable trust in you and a holy courage to do you will. Help me not to succumb to despair in the face of danger. Keep me from all evil. Sustain me that I may follow you faithfully until my life’s end. In the name of the worldwide Light, Jesus Christ, Amen.