9th. July. 2021. Daily Devotion.
On Comfort
Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
~ Matthew 10:34
God is the only comfort. He is also the supreme terror: the thing we most need and the thing we most want to hide from. He is our only possible ally, and we have made ourselves His enemies. Some people talk as if meeting the gaze of absolute goodness would be fun. They need to think again. They are still only playing with religion.
Goodness is either the great safety or the great danger—according to the way you react to it. And we have reacted the wrong way. . .
Of course, I quite agree that the Christian religion is, in the long run, a thing of unspeakable comfort. But it does not begin in comfort; it begins in the dismay I have been describing, and it is no use at all trying to go on to that comfort without first going through that dismay.
In religion, as in war and everything else, comfort is the one thing you cannot get by looking for it. If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end: if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth—only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin with and, in the end, despair.
Lord, let me not engage in wishful thinking, but know your Word as you have given it. Amen.
~ from “Mere Christianity” by C. S. Lewis
Prayer for the Day
Holy God, you have given me another day. Bring your Holy Spirit into my mind and my life, so that I may walk this day in your presence. Let me feel your presence throughout the day, remembering always that you sent your Spirit that you might be a living force in all I see and all I do. When I feel temptation or begin to stray, show me your path. Correct me, comfort me, let me live your will; that I may be happy in this life and blessed in the life to come. This I pray in the name of Christ, my Lord. Amen.
Prayer for the Holy Spirit’s Guidance
Gracious God, Send your Holy Spirit to deepen my worship life.
Open my heart to the gifts and cultures which surround my church.
Open my heart to the people who are different from me.
In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
Coronavirus Prayer
Good and Gracious God,
We thank you for the resilience
and grace that you have given us
to bear this time of Covid virus.
Lord help us to lean on your goodness
in times of suffering and isolation
so that we may be aware of others and serve them.
Guide and direct all whose decisions and advice
determine how we progress through the pandemic,
that they may be careful and wise and work for the safety of all.
We make this prayer in the Name of Jesus Christ,
Our Lord and Saviour. Amen.
