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.

When Emergencies Are Blessings--Jan. 15, 2016


God of our salvation, our deeds of iniquity
must grieve you to your heart;
moreover, they turn us
away from you.
But sometimes
when an emergency arises,
we turn back to you, and you turn
our plain water into finest wine,
forgiving our transgressions.

Lectionary Readings
Ps. 51; 148; 142; 65
Gen. 6:1-8
Heb. 3:12-19
John 2:1-12

Selected Verses
Ps. 65:3
When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us,
          you forgive our transgressions. 

Gen. 6:6
And the LORD was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 

Heb. 3:12
Take care, brothers and sisters, that none of you may have an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 

John 2:3
When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine."
Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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