1 Peter 2 : 5-10 (NRSV)
...like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in scripture: ‘See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’ To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe, ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner’, and ‘A stone that makes them stumble, and a rock that makes them fall.’ They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Daily Byte
Think for a moment about the “world” you live in. What is the physical environment in which you live out your days? Who are the people that you rub shoulders with every day? How do you believe this world “works”? What are the values, ideas and attitudes that you carry with you through your life? Peter speaks about the way Jesus moves us out of a broken human context for living (darkness) into a whole, God-filled life (light). Which best describes your life at the moment - darkness or light?
The choice of what context we will live in is one that we must make each day. As we seek to live in the light, recognising the world as filled with God, and allowing our awareness of God’s presence to be our guide, we become those who reveal God’s goodness to others. Our worship is intended to teach us to recognise God’s presence and light in every moment, every place and every person. This effectively changes our world, and makes it a different place for us. Are you willing for your worship to change your world? In what way can you allow your worship to help make today a day lived in the light?
Pray As You Go
The bits and pieces of this physical world are so real, Jesus, that it can be difficult to recognise your presence within it all;
But, in spite of the darkness that threatens to overwhelm us, the darkness of despair and cynicism, of greed and exploitation, of violence and conflict,
We choose to believe in the light, and we ask you to open our eyes to your presence and grace so that we can live each moment as those whose lives are filled with light, and who bring light to everyone we encounter.
Amen.
Today’s devotion is taken from Rev John van de Laar’s outstanding book ‘The Hour That Changes Everything: How worship forms us into the people God wants us to be.’ Used with permission.
To order copies of this book and for other superb worship resources visit http://www.sacredise.com
No comments:
Post a Comment