Refuge and Strength
“God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.”
--Psalm 46: 1
This song can be helpful when the perceived pressures of the day appear to be more than we can bear. Take time with Psalm 46 today and with the following prayer for healing:
“God of All, you have so fashioned the world that it possesses the potential to repair its imperfections. And, O Eternal One, you have fashioned humankind by endowing us, as your partners, with the creative ability to help the repairing. You gave us the insight to transform the simple herb into a healing balm for the body. May we, as your servant people, realize our responsibility to transform the herb of human caring into a healing balm for the aching soul. Like us, many are in need. We know the inner yearning for fulfillment, for purpose and meaning in our lives. May we come to know that as we help others to feel fulfilled, so shall we. And then, may we recognize the strength, the will, the dedication, and the commitment to do that for which we were created, to serve you realizing that, as you said in your word, “The kingdom of God is within us.”
A prayer for today: God of life, teach me stillness so that I can know strength. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.29.10
Friday, January 29, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Daily Devotion - Thursday, January 28
The Wise and Mature
“Listen to advice and accept instruction,
and in the end you will be wise.”
--Proverbs 19: 20
Most of the stories gathered from my years of ministry come from the lips of wise people, mature people who have found value in listening to advice and accepting instructions. While there are plenty of stories from both young and old alike, it seems the statements of the wise and mature grow more valuable with every passing day. Here is a touching prayer by Robert Terry Weston:
“Beautiful are the youth
Whose rich emotions flash and burn
Whose lithe bodies filled with energy and grace,
Sway in their happy dance of life;
And beautiful likewise are the mature
Who have learned compassion and patience, charity and wisdom,
Though they be rarer far than beautiful youth.
“But most beautiful and most rare is a gracious old age
Which has drawn from life the skill to takes its varied strands:
The harsh advance of age, the pang of grief,
The passing of dear friends, the loss of strength,
And with fresh insight weave them in a rich and gracious pattern all its own.
“This is the greatest skill of all,
To take the bitter with the sweet and make it beautiful,
To take the whole of life in all its moods,
Its strengths and weaknesses
And of the whole make one great and celestial harmony.”
A prayer for today: Lord, help me to capture what you are trying to teach me. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.28.10
“Listen to advice and accept instruction,
and in the end you will be wise.”
--Proverbs 19: 20
Most of the stories gathered from my years of ministry come from the lips of wise people, mature people who have found value in listening to advice and accepting instructions. While there are plenty of stories from both young and old alike, it seems the statements of the wise and mature grow more valuable with every passing day. Here is a touching prayer by Robert Terry Weston:
“Beautiful are the youth
Whose rich emotions flash and burn
Whose lithe bodies filled with energy and grace,
Sway in their happy dance of life;
And beautiful likewise are the mature
Who have learned compassion and patience, charity and wisdom,
Though they be rarer far than beautiful youth.
“But most beautiful and most rare is a gracious old age
Which has drawn from life the skill to takes its varied strands:
The harsh advance of age, the pang of grief,
The passing of dear friends, the loss of strength,
And with fresh insight weave them in a rich and gracious pattern all its own.
“This is the greatest skill of all,
To take the bitter with the sweet and make it beautiful,
To take the whole of life in all its moods,
Its strengths and weaknesses
And of the whole make one great and celestial harmony.”
A prayer for today: Lord, help me to capture what you are trying to teach me. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.28.10
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Daily Devotion - Wednesday, January 27
Crying to the Lord
“Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.
Lord, hear my voice.”
--Psalm 130: 1
Today we will perform a variety of tasks in our work and we will perform our tasks relatively certain that there will be peace and calm around us. Today there are thousands of parents who are crying from the depths of their souls because their sons and daughters are on assignments to keep the world peaceful, possibly having to participate in a war to supposedly bring about world peace. It seems that our souls should be crying forth to the Almighty on behalf of these military personnel and their extended families.
One Sunday a few years ago, while enjoying a cup of coffee following a church service, a friend was crying. She had a son in the Navy. As we entered into conversation she shared, “I haven’t heard from him since New Year’s Eve. I realized today how much I’ve missed hearing his voice.” Linda had not heard from her son for a while and she realized how much she missed the sound of his voice. My heart joined hers in “crying to the Lord.”
Today we will perform a variety of tasks and there will be relative peace and calm. Maybe we can all take some time to feel the deep longings thousands of parents and loved ones are having about all sorts of issues related to their children living in such a chaotic world. Take time to “cry to the Lord.”
A prayer for today: Lord, hear our voices today. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.27.10
“Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.
Lord, hear my voice.”
--Psalm 130: 1
Today we will perform a variety of tasks in our work and we will perform our tasks relatively certain that there will be peace and calm around us. Today there are thousands of parents who are crying from the depths of their souls because their sons and daughters are on assignments to keep the world peaceful, possibly having to participate in a war to supposedly bring about world peace. It seems that our souls should be crying forth to the Almighty on behalf of these military personnel and their extended families.
One Sunday a few years ago, while enjoying a cup of coffee following a church service, a friend was crying. She had a son in the Navy. As we entered into conversation she shared, “I haven’t heard from him since New Year’s Eve. I realized today how much I’ve missed hearing his voice.” Linda had not heard from her son for a while and she realized how much she missed the sound of his voice. My heart joined hers in “crying to the Lord.”
Today we will perform a variety of tasks and there will be relative peace and calm. Maybe we can all take some time to feel the deep longings thousands of parents and loved ones are having about all sorts of issues related to their children living in such a chaotic world. Take time to “cry to the Lord.”
A prayer for today: Lord, hear our voices today. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.27.10
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Daily Devotion - Tuesday, January 26
SFGTD
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
God mercies never come to an end
They are new every morning, new every morning
Great is God’s faithfulness, Great is God’s faithfulness.”
--A paraphrase of an early Hebraic song
No, this is not an eye test. Yesterday I shared the story behind SFGTD, which stands for Something For God To Do. As a follow up to yesterday’s devotion, I hope you will enjoy this ancient Chinese story.
There was an old farmer who had an old horse for tilling his fields. One day the horse escaped into the hills and when all the farmer’s neighbors sympathized with the old man over his bad luck, the farmer replied, “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?” A week later the horse returned with a herd of wild horses from the hills and this time the neighbors congratulated the farmer on his good luck. His reply was “Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?” Then, when the farmer’s son was attempting to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this was very bad luck?! Not the farmer, whose only reactions was “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?” Some weeks later the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer’s son with his broken leg they let him off. Now was that good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?
Everything that seems on the surface to be an evil may be a good in disguise. And everything that seems good on the surface may really be an evil. So let us be wise and leave the decision making to God. So let us be wise and learn that in all things we can and should give thanks. So let us be wise and give everything to God.
--Ben Keckler
01.26.10
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
God mercies never come to an end
They are new every morning, new every morning
Great is God’s faithfulness, Great is God’s faithfulness.”
--A paraphrase of an early Hebraic song
No, this is not an eye test. Yesterday I shared the story behind SFGTD, which stands for Something For God To Do. As a follow up to yesterday’s devotion, I hope you will enjoy this ancient Chinese story.
There was an old farmer who had an old horse for tilling his fields. One day the horse escaped into the hills and when all the farmer’s neighbors sympathized with the old man over his bad luck, the farmer replied, “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?” A week later the horse returned with a herd of wild horses from the hills and this time the neighbors congratulated the farmer on his good luck. His reply was “Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?” Then, when the farmer’s son was attempting to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this was very bad luck?! Not the farmer, whose only reactions was “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?” Some weeks later the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer’s son with his broken leg they let him off. Now was that good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?
Everything that seems on the surface to be an evil may be a good in disguise. And everything that seems good on the surface may really be an evil. So let us be wise and leave the decision making to God. So let us be wise and learn that in all things we can and should give thanks. So let us be wise and give everything to God.
--Ben Keckler
01.26.10
Monday, January 25, 2010
Daily Devotion - Monday, January 25
Something for God to Do
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
God’s mercies never come to an end.
They are new every morning, new every morning.
Great is God’s faithfulness, Great is God’s faithfulness.”
--a paraphrase of an early Hebraic song
This is something I learned from a patient several years ago. I try to share it each January; I think it can help us in the New Year! One day I was visiting with a patient who had received some bad news; I was listening to a story of personal faith unfold. The conviction of faith I was hearing was really remarkable; I let the patient know how empowering his words were for me. Then, after a moment of silence, he picked up a pencil and wrote these five letters on a piece of paper: SFGTD.
“Tell me more,” I said.
The patient proceeded to explain that within minutes of hearing his news he spent a few moments in prayer. In his prayer he gave his diagnosis to God. He told me, “I am not going to concern myself with this and let worry overtake me.” He confessed that he was having moments when he would catch himself going back, but each time he thought of SFGTD. “Whatever happens will happen, we will see what each day brings,” I heard.
“So,” I asked, “what is SFGTD?”
“Well, I prayed and asked in faith. From here on out it is ‘Something For God To Do.’”
Friends, I am a better person now that I know of SFGTD. I wanted you to know of it, too! I’m glad I had a chance to listen to one of God’s people.
A prayer: O God, I release my burdens to your steadfast love. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.25.10
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
God’s mercies never come to an end.
They are new every morning, new every morning.
Great is God’s faithfulness, Great is God’s faithfulness.”
--a paraphrase of an early Hebraic song
This is something I learned from a patient several years ago. I try to share it each January; I think it can help us in the New Year! One day I was visiting with a patient who had received some bad news; I was listening to a story of personal faith unfold. The conviction of faith I was hearing was really remarkable; I let the patient know how empowering his words were for me. Then, after a moment of silence, he picked up a pencil and wrote these five letters on a piece of paper: SFGTD.
“Tell me more,” I said.
The patient proceeded to explain that within minutes of hearing his news he spent a few moments in prayer. In his prayer he gave his diagnosis to God. He told me, “I am not going to concern myself with this and let worry overtake me.” He confessed that he was having moments when he would catch himself going back, but each time he thought of SFGTD. “Whatever happens will happen, we will see what each day brings,” I heard.
“So,” I asked, “what is SFGTD?”
“Well, I prayed and asked in faith. From here on out it is ‘Something For God To Do.’”
Friends, I am a better person now that I know of SFGTD. I wanted you to know of it, too! I’m glad I had a chance to listen to one of God’s people.
A prayer: O God, I release my burdens to your steadfast love. Amen.
--Ben Keckler
01.25.10
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