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
Make the sign of the cross, and say,
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invitation Prayer
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matt. 5:8) O Lord, you see all things. Purify my heart that I may see you clearly. Amen.
Word: John 18:36
Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.”
Meditation
Don’t be fooled. No political candidate is perfect. No winner on November 3rd will usher in the Kingdom of God. Only Jesus does that and he’s already at work.
Remember, the Kingdom of God is his reign and rule, wherever the King is at work. The Kingdom “is at hand,” right now. You may ask, “Where? I don’t see God at work in all this stuff. Not in 2020. Something’s not right.”
God’s ways are not our ways. We might be looking at it forwards, not backwards. King Jesus has always worked in hidden, subversive ways, invisible to the naked eye. The cross is the logo of his Kingdom. It’s his coat of arms. The cross is backwards. Life by death. Victory by sacrifice. Exaltation by humiliation.
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 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.
Closing Prayer
King Jesus, your Kingdom comes by a cross. Help us to see your hidden work. Forgive our blindness to your activity. Have mercy on us. Renew us and lead us to walk in your ways until our life’s end. Amen.