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.


Not the Arrogance of the Strong--June 7, 2011


God, not for you is the arrogance of the strong
or the way of the wicked. You stand with the
alien; you uphold the orphan and the widow.

For the defenseless, the oppressed, you offer hope,
a steadfast anchor of the soul, to enter where Jesus entered.
With joy we return to you—do not let our joy become arrogant.


Lectionary Readings
Ps. 98; 146; 66; 116
Ezek. 7:10-15, 23b-27
Heb. 6:13-20
Luke 10:1-17

Selected Verses
Ps. 146:9
The LORD watches over the strangers;
      he upholds the orphan and the widow,
      but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

Ezek. 7:24b
I will put an end to the arrogance of the strong,
     and their holy places shall be profaned.

Heb. 6:19-20a
We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered…

Luke 10:17
The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!”
Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)