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 31, 2007

I. Readings
Psalms 96, 132, 134
Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Galatians 4:21-31
Mark 8:11-26

II. Selections
Psalm 96:1
O sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD all the earth.

Isaiah 53:12
Therefore I will allot [ my servant] a portion with the great,
and he shall divide the spoil with the strong;
because he poured out himself to death,
and was numbered with the transgressors;
yet he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.

Galatians 4:26
But the other woman corresponds to the Jerusalem above; she is free, and she is our mother.

Mark 8:12-13
And [ Jesus] sighed deeply in his spirit and said, "Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation." And he left [ the Pharisees], and getting into the boat again, he went across to the other side.

III. Meditation: A new song

O God, you give us a new song to sing-
not like the old song the world sings.

The world asks you to prove your power with a sign;
your proof comes not from power, but from suffering.

The world sings of our birth into slavery,
you sing how you became a slave to make us free.

Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)