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.

Sheltered, and Called--June 1, 2022

[From May 23, 2012 archive]

 

You are a stronghold for the oppressed;

you provide a refuge and a shelter.

 

Yet from the safety of our shelter, you call us—

call us to a life worthy of your calling.

 

We can respond to your call; or we can cling to the shelter,

begging you to leave us alone in our neighborhood.

 

Lectionary Readings

Ps. 99; 147:1-11; 9; 118

Isa. 4:2-6

Eph. 4:1-16

Matt. 8:28-34

 

Selected Verses 

Ps. 9:9

The LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed, 
          a stronghold in times of trouble. 


Isa. 4:6

[The canopy of the LORD] will serve as a pavilion, a shade by day from the heat, and a refuge and a shelter from the storm and rain.

 

Eph. 4:1

I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called…

 

Matt. 8:34

Then the whole town came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.


Posted by Elmer E. Ewing

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