27th. April 2020.Daily Devotion.

Devotion Monday 27th April 2020
7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ— the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. 10 I want to know Christ— yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:7-11

These are challenging words by St Paul what are we to make of them? Do you sometimes feel that this period of limitation and lockdown is costing too much? How we answer this question will depend on what is important to us. Our freedom to live as we prefer and to go where we please? Our concern about the cost to our nation’s economy and our own fiscal security? Our fear for our children and grandchildren’s future? Everyone will have their own criteria.

Paul in effect says that restriction, loss and poverty are not always negative from a spiritual point of view. Here are some thoughts about this:

The disciples are needy in every way. They are simply “poor” (Luke 6:20) (They have no security, no property to call their own, no piece of earth they could call their home, no earthly community to which they might fully belong. But they also have neither spiritual power of their own, nor experience or knowledge they can refer to and which could comfort them. For his sake they have lost all that. When they followed him, they lost themselves and everything else which could have made them rich. Now they are so poor, so inexperienced, so foolish that they cannot hope for anything except him who called them. DB

Psalm Fragment

As for me, I am poor and needy,
but the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
do not delay, O my God. Psalm 40:7

Questions to Ponder

• What kinds of poverty are there?

• In the life of faith, what is the point of disciples being poor?

• Paul asserts that for Jesus’ sake disciples lose everything. Why would Jesus want that?

• Reflect on why you would (or would not) consider yourself poor as a disciple of Jesus.

• Could you imagine yourself as ever seeing poverty in its broadest sense as a gift? Why, or why not?

Might there not be a benefit in what we are experiencing which is yet to become evident? Might we one day look back at this and say that it was ultimately worth it for the sake of humanity? That is not to discount the pain and the loss that many have already experienced and may yet come to any of us.

Light is always costly and comes at the expense of that which produces it. An unlit candle does not shine, for burning must come before the light. And we can be of little use to others without a cost to ourselves. Burning suggests suffering, and we try to avoid pain.
We tend to feel we are doing the greatest good in the world when we are strong and fit for active duty and when our hearts and hands are busy with kind acts of service. Therefore when we are set aside to suffer, when we are sick, when we are consumed with pain, and when all our activities have been stopped, we feel we are no longer of any use and are accomplishing nothing.
Yet if we will be patient and submissive, it is almost certain we will be a greater blessing to the world around us during our time of suffering and pain than we were when we thought we were doing our greatest work. Then we are burning and shining brightly as a result of the fire. From Evening Thoughts.

The glory of tomorrow is rooted in the drudgery of today.

Biblical Wisdom

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:3

Intercessions

Pray for the “rich” that they may have compassion for the “poor.” Pray for the “poor” that they may have compassion for the “rich.”
Pray that those who are suffering most may have peace about the eternal value of their experience in the knowledge of your grace and love for them.

Prayer for Today

Lord, help me to lose everything for your sake and so discover all that I have and am in you.
Give justice to the poor and the orphan;
uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.
Rescue the poor and helpless;
deliver them from the grasp of evil people.” Psalm 82:3-4

Holy Lord,
make our eyes and our hearts more open to the needs of others,
especially the hungry, the hurting, and the poor.
Help us to see that in caring for the Earth,
we are also caring for one another.
And help us, O Lord, to live in ways that promote respect,
compassion, justice, and peace for all people,
and for all of your broken and yet beautiful creation.
Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayers Amen