I am an emeritus professor from Cornell University and was a Commissioned Lay Preacher in the Presbyterian Church (USA). For many years I have followed the Daily Lectionary as printed in the Mission Yearbook of my church. For each day of a two-year cycle, the lectionary lists four psalms and three other scriptural passages--usually one from the Old Testament and two from the New Testament. My practice is to copy down a verse or two from one of the psalms and from each of the other three passages. After I have written out all four selections, I reflect upon them, rearrange their order, and incorporate them into a meditation. Sometimes I retain much of the original wording; sometimes all that remains of a selection is an idea that was stimulated when I read the original words. All selections are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible. For the Daily Lectionary, see the link below.

August 08, 2005

I. Readings
Psalms 5, 29, 82
2 Samuel 13:23-39
Acts 20:17-38
Mark 9:42-50

II. Selections
Ps. 5:3
O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.

2 Sam. 13:32-33
But Jonadab, the son of David's brother Shimeah, said, "Let not my lord suppose that they have killed all the young men the king's sons; Amnon alone is dead. This has been determined by Absalom from the day Amnon raped his sister Tamar. Now therefore, do not let my lord the king take it to heart, as if all the king's sons were dead; for Amnon alone is dead."

Acts 20:24
" ...But I do not count my life of any value to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God's grace." [ Paul's farewell to the elders of the church at Ephesus]

Mark 9:42
"If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. ..." [ Jesus to his disciples]

III. Meditation: The value of our lives
Of what value are our lives? As David grieved over the loss of each of his sons, even sons whose behavior was appalling, do you not grieve over the loss of each of your children? Jesus put a high value on the little ones who believed in him, with a dire warning for anyone who might put a stumbling block before one of them. O God, in the morning you hear our voice; in the morning we plead our case to you, and watch. Help us not to overvalue our own lives, but grant that we may finish our course and the ministry that we have received from you, to testify to the good news of your grace. And forbid that we should be a stumbling block to any who believe in you.

Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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