21st. May. 2021. Daily Devotion.
1 John 3:16-18
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.
The best love comes not from words but from action, and it is almost always something of a burden, in human terms. The love of a mother for her child is possibly the most extreme form of natural love, and it doesn’t have much to do with talking. It is changing diapers, getting up exhausted at 3 a.m., feeding, bathing, and going to the doctor.
Christian love, though, is not natural; Jesus told us to love our enemies, to love those who do us ill, which is about the most unnatural thing we could ever do. Because the world does not reward us for doing it; we are not fulfilling a natural instinct, but obeying the will of God, when we love other people towards whom we do not feel natural affection.
Our reward, though, is even greater. For it is part of our cross that we pick up when we follow Jesus. God smiles on us when we help other people, and if we talk to Him in our prayers, and listen carefully, He will reward us even while we are still on earth.
~ M Barge.
Lord God, please move me to love others as Christ loved us, despite our imperfection and sin.
St Benedict Prayer
O gracious and holy Father, give us wisdom to perceive you, diligence to seek you, patience to wait for you, eyes to behold you, a heart to meditate upon you, and a life to proclaim you, through the power of the spirit of Jesus Christ our Lord
For Humility of Understanding
O Mighty God, who loves and commands concord and unity among his saints, let me always remember that there is only One: One body and one Spirit; One hope, to which we are called. “One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.”
Heavenly Lord, I know you imperfectly, pray to you imperfectly, live imperfectly, and read your Word imperfectly. Let me not be separated from my brothers and sisters by their imperfection, or my own; for your grace is made perfect only in weakness. Let me be bold in the proclamation of your Gospel, but humble in the realization of my own imperfection, so that I do not create barriers between myself and others through the sins of anger, pride, and self-righteousness.
In Christ’s name I pray, Amen.
A prayer remembering God is with us
Lord God, you are always with me.
You are with me in the day and in the night.
You are with me when I’m happy and when I’m sad.
You are with me when I’m healthy and when I am ill.
You are with me when I am peaceful and when I am worried.
Today I am feeling (name how you are feeling) because (reasons you are feeling this way).
Help me to remember that you love me and are with me in everything today.
In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
