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.

January 30, 2006

I. Readings
Psalms 9, 62, 73
Genesis 19:1-29
Hebrews 11:1-12
John 6:27-40

II. Selections
Psalm 62:8
Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.

Genesis 19:16
But [ Lot] lingered; so the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the LORD being merciful to him, and they brought him out and left him outside the city.

Hebrews 11:2
Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval.

John 6:30
So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing?


III. Meditation: A refuge to us
Give us the faith of our ancestors,
that we may trust in you at all times,
and pour out our hearts before you,
for you are a refuge to us.

How often we fail to trust you
and ask you to give us a sign,
or inquire what work you are performing,
so that we may see it and believe.

How often we linger in danger,
and you in your mercy
seize us by the hand and lead us away,
for you are a refuge to us.

Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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