28th. May. 2022. Daily Devotion.
5 My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death. Psalm 22:15
Sand is beautiful. Sprinkled around the shoulder of a lake, it forms an exquisite collar. Blowing winds tease beach sand into blond dunes and pale valleys. Even the loneliest desert has austere beauty; absence paints its own splendour.
The absence of God is never beautiful, though; it is death. Desperately our psalmist cries out, asking God to come and find him. In effect, the psalmist says, “Without your help I will die in this wilderness.”
God is never too far away to hear a call for help. God will come to the rescue. Our story of desertion is also one of recovery—a story meant to be punctuated by frequent hallelujahs.
Our lives can have moments of despair and abandonment. The desert can be the last place we want to travel through in any season, yet it may seem like the only place our feet will take us. Our hope rests in God’s unseen presence. God’s strength will compensate for our weakness; God’s comfort will soothe our afflicted hearts.
Our stories of the desert and the dirt are ones we don’t want to tell. We’d rather share news of our victories and daring deeds crowned with success. Yet the psalmist reminds us that our worst moments and greatest weaknesses reveal God’s strength and faithfulness best. T. Leunk.
Lord God, you found me suffering in the desert and rescued me. Thank you for sending your Son to the cross to save me from the desert of sin and death. Amen.
Let us run the race that is set before us in the royal road of love. Let us keep an even pace rooted in the faith of the saints. Let us be grounded in true catholic love, until we are consumed by the fire of your grace for ever. Amen. John Wesley (1703-1791)
Loving Lord Jesus, help us to be as respectful of strangers as you were and to meet them as equals and valued human beings, not as objects of charity or as people to be avoided because they are different.
May we be sensitive to unknown backgrounds, aware of our own prejudices, open to and accepting of other cultures and willing to learn from them.
Help us to hear their lament for a lost country, for family left behind, for poverty or persecution in a former life – exchanged for the hostility and indifference of an unfair society, where opportunity is far from equal and judgments are made on superficial evidence. Lord, may our welcome be as genuine, honest and loving as yours. Amen.
Prayer for the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Christ Jesus, before ascending into heaven, You promised to send the Holy Spirit to Your apostles and disciples.
Grant that the same Spirit may perfect in my life the work of Your grace and love. Grant me the Spirit of Fear of the Lord that I may be filled with a loving reverence toward You. Grant me the Spirit of Piety that I may find peace and fulfilment in serving You, while serving others; the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with You and, with courage, overcome the obstacles that interfere with my salvation; the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know You and know myself, and thus grow in holiness; the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Your truth; the Spirit of Counsel that I may choose the surest way of doing Your will, seeking first the Kingdom; Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may aspire to the things that last forever; Teach me to be Your faithful disciple. Animate me with Your Spirit in every aspect of my life, today and throughout the week to come. Amen.