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.

Your Words, and Ours--Feb. 13, 2022

[From Feb. 16, 2020 archive]

 

Lord Jesus, sometimes your words

perplexed your own disciples,

and they perplex us, too.

 

Nevertheless, you are not like Laban,

who deceived his nephew Jacob

(also a deceitful man).

 

We are nourished on your words,

even on words that we 

find hard to accept.

 

May our own words be acceptable

to you, with what is in our hearts,

O Lord our Rock and

our Redeemer.

 

Lectionary Readings

Ps. 19; 150; 81; 113

Gen. 29:20-35

1 Tim. 3:14-4:10

Mark 10:23-31

 

Selected Verses 

Ps. 19:14

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
          be acceptable to you,
          O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

 

Gen. 29:25

When morning came, it was Leah!  And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me?  Did I not serve with you for Rachel?  Why then have you deceived me?”

 

1 Tim. 4:6

If you put these instructions before the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound teaching that you have followed.

 

Mark 10:24

And the disciples were perplexed at these words.  But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!  …”


Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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