Daily Devotion - Monday, January 9

A New Year Dawns

“God has put a new song in my mouth,
it is a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
And put their trust in the Lord.”
--An ancient Hebrew song (Psalm 40:3)

NOTE: One of the finest spiritual guides of the 20th century was Henri Nouwen. I was privileged to attend several of his presentations on my personal journey. This week’s devotions are a small tribute to Henri, a teacher who faithfully pointed people to God.

As we begin a new year, I would pray that we would begin the year with hope. There is trouble all around us and it takes many different forms. Where is the message of hope? Where is God?

Within our health care system several hundred people will be treated today. For some the news will be routine, for others the news may be quite unexpected. Where is the message of hope? Where is God?

Henri writes, “God is ‘beyond’, beyond our heart and mind, beyond our feelings and thoughts, beyond our expectations and desires, and beyond all the events and experiences that make up our life. Still God is also in the center of all of it. Here we touch the heart of prayer since here it comes manifest that in prayer the distinction between God’s presence and absence cannot be distinguished. … When God chose to share our own most painful experience of divine absence, God became most present to us. It is into this mystery that we enter when we pray.”

--Ben Keckler
01.09.12