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
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invitation
O God, you are the beginning, the middle, and the end. You are all in all. Lead me. Help me. Forgive me. Keep me from wandering and weariness. Keep my love ready and willing to serve You by serving others. Praise and honor be to You, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God now and forever. Amen.
Confession
O God, how can I believe without your help. I am filled with doubt. “What about . . . ?” “Is it really true?” “How do I really know you’re there? That you’re listening? That you care about me?” I confess with honesty all my fear and disbelief. Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. Melt me. Mold me. Fill me. Use me. I believe; help my unbelief.
Word: John 17:26
“I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
Meditation: Love in Action
Today’s meditation is written by Allison Lewis.
When I think of weddings, one of the most important aspects of the entire ceremony is the exchange of vows and rings. As a couple shares their handwritten or traditional marriage vows with each other, they place a ring on their spouse’s finger as a symbol of their love and commitment to their new husband or wife.
Although I’m not married, I’ve been to enough weddings to know that this is an extremely special point of the service. The couple is making a public commitment of their love to one another, in front of family and friends. And they seal this promise with a ring—a symbol of unending love and unity. These two people now form a single unit—they are on the same team.
In John 17, Jesus prays to his heavenly father before he is betrayed by Judas and given into the hands of the chief priests and Pharisees. Jesus prays that God would continue to protect, guide and unify his disciples and friends after he is gone. He ends his prayer this way: “I made known to them your name … that the love with which you have loved me may be in them” (John 17:26). Jesus asks the Lord to bless his disciples with the same love that the heavenly father shows him. That’s a bold, courageous prayer and a fierce kind of love—a divine and sacrificial love.
As wonderful as earthly weddings are, they cannot compare to the love of Jesus. You see, Jesus’ love for you, me and his followers is so much bigger, stronger and more beautiful than any other kind of love. His love trumps hate, trumps fear, trumps anxiety, and trumps evil in this world. It is an everlasting love, and it lives inside you and me.
Our job as followers of Jesus is to love others. Author Bob Goff explains it like this: “love does.” People around you and me will know we love Jesus by how we treat them and how we speak to them. The presence of God’s love inside your heart and mine is what unites all of us. And we have the opportunity to go share it with someone else. How are you going to love someone this week?
Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for uniting us through your powerful, unconditional, unchanging love. Help me to love others this week so that they may see you through my words and actions. Amen.
Benediction
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Amen. (Rom. 15:13)