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.

As an Eagle Takes up its Young--June 10, 2015


Faithful God, as an eagle takes up its young
and bears them aloft on its pinions,
you alone have guided your people.

But when we suppose that your kingdom
 is about to appear, give us patience;
help us remember all the hardships

that your servants have endured--beset
by danger from rivers, wilderness
journeys, bandits, or false friends.

May their examples inspire us but also
remind us--when you lift us up,
it may be to face a new danger.

Lectionary Readings
Ps. 96; 147:1-11; 132; 134
Deut. 31:30-32:14
2 Cor. 11:21b-33
Luke 19:11-27

Selected Verses
Ps. 132:1
O LORD, remember in David’s favor
          all the hardships he endured…

Deut. 32:11-12a
As an eagle stirs up its nest, and hovers over its young; as it spreads its wings, takes them up, and bears them aloft on its pinions, the LORD alone guided [his people, Jacob]…

2 Cor. 11:25b-26
Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers and sisters…

Luke 19:11
As they were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.

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