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.


A Plea for Soft Hearts--March 28, 2012



O God, from whom our competence comes,
in the morning we plead our case to you,
and watch.

Take from us all hardness of heart,
which keeps us from listening for
your truth.

Give us instead soft hearts--
the hearts of little children,
open to you.

Lectionary Readings
Ps. 5; 147:1-11; 27; 51
Exod. 7:8-24
2 Cor. 2:14-3:6
Mark 10:1-16

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

Exod. 7:13
Still Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said.

2 Cor. 3:5
Not that we are competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our competence is from God…

Mark 10:15
"…Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it." [Jesus to his disciples]
Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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