29th. March. 2022. Daily Devotion.
23 See, the storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked. 24 The fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back until he fully accomplishes the purposes of his heart. In days to come
you will understand this. Jeremiah 30:23-24
On nautical maps, an important feature is the “wind rose,” a graphic image used by meteorologists to show how wind speed and direction are typically distributed in a certain place. This tool can be very useful to mariners for avoiding trouble spots at sea.
In some ways, this passage in Jeremiah 30 is like a “wind rose.” It helps God’s people see how the Lord was going to act to restore them. You see, at that time in history, God’s people were in exile for rebelling against God. They had followed other gods and had refused to honour the Lord, who had made them into a great nation. So, God had disciplined them by sending them into exile.
Sadly, though, their conquerors had brutally enslaved them and carried them away after destroying their land. And when God’s people cried out in their distress, the Lord heard them.
So how would God act to restore his people? “The storm of the Lord” would burst out like “a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked.” God is powerful enough to overwhelm evil. The people needed God to save them from this enemy that had exploited them.
Explaining all this, God promised to bring them honour again, saying, “So you will be my people, and I will be your God.”
Lord and God, your power is greater than any other. Thank you for being merciful and just. Help us to honour you above all and to serve you faithfully. Amen.
Guide and govern your Church, O Lord, that we may walk warily in times of quiet and boldly in times of danger, through Christ our Lord. Amen. Franciscan Breviary (13th century)
Holy God, our experience of pandemic and lockdown has made us rethink the meaning of place. So often we have focused on buildings and how we make others welcome in those places. But the place where we all really need to be is in your arms of love, in your family and in your kingdom. For in your arms, your family, and your kingdom there is not just room for all, but a role for all.
Inspire us with a fresh vision of how we can invite others into that place of encounter with you, offering welcome, forgiveness, grace, and joy. Thank you for the promise of a place where each of us belongs and where you dwell among us. Amen.
For Racial Harmony
God and Father of all, in your love you made all the nations of the world to be a family, and your Son taught us to love one another. Yet our world is riven apart with prejudice, arrogance, and pride.
Help the different races to love and understand one another better. Increase among us sympathy, tolerance, and goodwill, that we may learn to appreciate the gifts that those of other races bring to us, and to see in all people our brothers and sisters for whom Christ died. Save us from jealousy, hatred, bitterness, and fear, and help us to live together as members of one family at home in the world, sons, and daughters of one Father who live in the liberty of the children of God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.