Our Land
“This land is your land
This land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me.”
From the time the Declaration of Independence set in motion the United States of America to the present day when we celebrate that declaration, the expansive boundaries of our land have invited people of the world to come and participate in this movement of freedom. Our history contains dark moments and moments when freedom’s torch burned with brilliance.
In our work and our leisure on this Thursday after another July 4 holiday, take some time to think about the multitude of blessings that you experience in this land. Today is also a day to spend time asking yourself questions about how you can make this land of opportunity a better “melting pot” for all people. And may today also be a day to give thanks for founding fathers, for dedicated women and men, for leaders who carry forth the drumbeat of freedom.
This is a day that God has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
--Ben Keckler
07.07.11
Showing posts with label Our Blessings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Our Blessings. Show all posts
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Daily Devotion - Tuesday, March 1
A Prayer of Thanks
“O give thanks to the Lord,
for God is good and God’s steadfast love endures forever.”
--The beginning of a hymn of praise,
Psalm 136
Today’s key verse centers on the theme of giving thanks for the blessings we receive on the journey through life. Over the centuries many wonderful prayers of thanksgiving have expressed the theme of this verse. For today, a contemporary expression echoes the theme.
Loving God, we offer you thanks and praise
For all the surprising graces which come to us,
For those that sustain our lives and those that change them:
For food—familiar diets and startling new aromas and tastes;
For homes—places of steady surroundings and settings for redemptive love;
For friendships—old friends who are willingly open in their affection and their correction and new friends who remind us that your spirited presence still dwells within us and others;
For tasks to perform—routine actions which we do well and which bring order to our days and tasks at which we have failed, restoring a needed humility in us;
For your steadfast love—reminding us of our heritage
and enabling us to move into our tomorrows with confidence and courage.
We offer you thanks and praise, great and mighty God.
Amen.
--Ben Keckler
03.01.11
“O give thanks to the Lord,
for God is good and God’s steadfast love endures forever.”
--The beginning of a hymn of praise,
Psalm 136
Today’s key verse centers on the theme of giving thanks for the blessings we receive on the journey through life. Over the centuries many wonderful prayers of thanksgiving have expressed the theme of this verse. For today, a contemporary expression echoes the theme.
Loving God, we offer you thanks and praise
For all the surprising graces which come to us,
For those that sustain our lives and those that change them:
For food—familiar diets and startling new aromas and tastes;
For homes—places of steady surroundings and settings for redemptive love;
For friendships—old friends who are willingly open in their affection and their correction and new friends who remind us that your spirited presence still dwells within us and others;
For tasks to perform—routine actions which we do well and which bring order to our days and tasks at which we have failed, restoring a needed humility in us;
For your steadfast love—reminding us of our heritage
and enabling us to move into our tomorrows with confidence and courage.
We offer you thanks and praise, great and mighty God.
Amen.
--Ben Keckler
03.01.11
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Daily Devotion - Thursday, July 8
I Love This Land!
“This land is your land,
This land is my land
From California to the New York Island,
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters,
This land was made for you and me."
From the time the Declaration of Independence set in motion the United States of America to this present day when we celebrate that declaration, the expansive boundaries of our land have invited people of the world to come and participate in this movement of freedom. Our history contains dark moments and moments when freedom’s torch burned with brilliance.
In our work and our leisure in these days following our national holiday, give some time to thinking about the multitude of blessings you experience in this land. Today is a day to spend time asking yourself questions about how you can make this land of opportunity a better “melting pot” for all people. Today is also a day to give thanks for founding fathers, for dedicated women and men, for leaders who carry forth the drumbeat of freedom.
This is a day which God has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
--Ben Keckler
07.08.10
“This land is your land,
This land is my land
From California to the New York Island,
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters,
This land was made for you and me."
From the time the Declaration of Independence set in motion the United States of America to this present day when we celebrate that declaration, the expansive boundaries of our land have invited people of the world to come and participate in this movement of freedom. Our history contains dark moments and moments when freedom’s torch burned with brilliance.
In our work and our leisure in these days following our national holiday, give some time to thinking about the multitude of blessings you experience in this land. Today is a day to spend time asking yourself questions about how you can make this land of opportunity a better “melting pot” for all people. Today is also a day to give thanks for founding fathers, for dedicated women and men, for leaders who carry forth the drumbeat of freedom.
This is a day which God has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
--Ben Keckler
07.08.10
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