July 15, 2006

I. Readings
Psalms 63, 90, 125
Deuteronomy 34:1-12
Romans 10:14-21
Matthew 24:32-51

II. Selections
Psalm 63:5
By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,
O God of our salvation;
you are the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas.

Deuteronomy 34:1b-3
...and the LORD showed [ Moses] the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain-that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees-as far as Zoar.

Romans 10:20
Then Isaiah is so bold as to say,
"I have been found by those who did not seek me;
I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me."

Matthew 24:35
" ...Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. ..."

III. Meditation: Found by those who do not seek you

O God of our salvation,
heaven and earth will pass away;
but not your words.

You let Moses see from Dan to Zoar,
our focus is too narrow,
restricted to our own small private world.

Give us a broad view of all you have created,
for you are found by those who do not seek you,
and show yourself to those who do not ask.

You are the hope
of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas.