Today’s Reflection
Note: This week’s New Every Morning reflections are structured differently to follow the format of our featured title Holy Listening, which offers 40 daily meditations with scripture verses for lectio divina, a yoga pose, a breath prayer, and reflection questions.
If wisdom is like honey to your soul, how do you embrace it as a gift for your future? For what do you hope? How can you open yourself both physically and spiritually to God’s hope for your future?
—Whitney R. Simpson, Holy Listening with Breath, Body, and the Spirit (Upper Room Books, 2016)
Today’s Breath Prayer
Inhale: O Lord,
Exhale: give me hope for the future.
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Today’s Scripture
My child, eat honey, for it is good,
and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.
Know that wisdom is such to your soul;
if you find it, you will find a future,
and your hope will not be cut off.
—Proverbs 24:13-14 (NRSV)
Prayer for the Week
Our Father who is in heaven, give us this day our daily bread.
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Lectionary Readings
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
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Father – align my hope with Your vision. May Your will be done in my life. May I trust where You are leading, even when I can’t see the way, nor understand the direction.
Father – You are here, working in our circumstances, transforming our malleable hearts, making all things new. May we be refreshed by the newness, or the hope of newness, trusting each step of the way.
I ran yesterday morning, not my usual length and much slower. But was encouraged to be able to do it. Took a brief walk with my friend before my god son’s ballgame. I left a few innings in as it began to rain. Not sure if they were able to finish it. It rained only briefly at my house – hoping enough to satisfy my flowers.
Prayers for little Chai, and his buddy, Tazzie. And for all the needs expressed here, or left unspoken. May God’s Peace be felt amongst us and our families.
I am celebrating my birthday today, despite a pretty high number on the pain scale. I am determined not to be deterred from enjoying homemade flan made by Roxy. I have PT today and we will see if it helps or hinders. I am praying for the New Every Morning family and friends.
Jill, it’s good to hear you are regaining your health, slowly but surely.
Julie, I have been in constant fervent prayer for your situation at home. I completed the novena for Chai and for Tazzie’s anxiety yesterday. I spend long, early hours in prayer and contemplation. You and Megan deserve a life free of deception and worry. I am starting a prayer series for you on Sunday.
Robert, I continue to pray for you and your family. I, too, missed many posts over the winter and know I missed something concerning you. I don’t need to know what because God does and the Holy Spirit leads me in my prayers. I am happy to hear about the model trains. As I was immersed in listening to programs on YouTube when I was unable to see, I learned a lot about Scotland, Ireland, England, Germany, France on history channels. I recognized the names of some German towns. Also, as I read about the lives of the Saints, more information on geographical and philosophical ideas are coming to my attention. It’s quite interesting as when I was in High School, everything was taught with an American twist.
Rick, since I missed the months in which you began commenting, I’m still just picking up bits and pieces of your situation. I know you have faced adversity needlessly, are struggling to complete your schooling and you have a cat(?). I look forward to hearing more about you and am praying for you and your husband.
Ally, again, I’m not familiar with you yet, but have picked up enough to know that you and David were both sick with Covid. You are a very wise lady and gained my high regards when you told me about your cats. Ha! I am praying for you both to get well and regain all your strength. I know you are now looking for work. Prayers going up!
Thank you, April, for such encouraging posts! Andrea, I look forward to hearing more from you when you are able. Lou, you and your children remain in my prayers. I am missing all our old commenters, too! Praying for BJ, Connie, Mary, Louise, Gerri, Betsy and Grace, Chloe and Page, Rusty, Francesca, Pam, Amy, Jean, Joan, Carol and Robin and all the names on my list. Prayers for all in the BALCONY and beyond.
And these three remain: Faith, Hope and Love; and the greatest of these is LOVE! Sending Love to all who visit!
💌🙏❤🙏❤🙏❤🌄❤🌅❤🐱❤🐈
Thought you all might enjoy this song. I am so sorry I forgot the author!
For All the Faithful Women
For all the faithful women who served in days of old
To you shall thanks be given, to all their story told.
They served with strength and gladness in tasks your wisdom gave.
To you their lives bore witness, proclaimed your power to save.”
O God, for saints and servants, those named and those unknown
In whom through all the ages Your light of glory shone,
We offer glad thanksgiving and fervent prayer we raise
That faithful in Your service, our lives may sing Your praise.
We praise your name for Miriam, who sang triumphantly
While Pharaoh’s vaunted army lay drowned beneath the sea.
As Israel marched to freedom, her chains of bondage gone,
So we may reach the kingdom your mighty arm has won.
To Hannah, praying childless, before the throne of grace,
You gave a son and called him to serve before your face.
Grant us her perseverance; Lord, teach us how to pray
And trust in your deliverance when darkness hides our way.
For Ruth, who left her homeland and ventured forth in faith,
Who pledged to serve and worship Naomi’s God till death.
We praise you, God of Israel, and pray for hearts set free
To bind ourselves to others in love and loyalty.
We honor faithful Mary, fair maiden, full of grace.
She bore the Christ, our brother, who saved our human race.
May we, with her, surrender ourselves to your command
And lay upon your altar our gifts of heart and hand.
Recall the outcast woman with whom our Lord conversed,
Christ gave her living water to quench her deepest thirst.
Like her, our hearts are yearning, Christ offers us his word,
Then may our lips be burning to witness to our Lord.
We praise the other Mary, who came at Easter dawn,
And near the tomb did tarry, but found her Lord was gone.
As joyfully she saw him in resurrection light,
May we by faith behold him, the day who ends all night.
Lord, hear our praise of Dorcas, who served the sick and poor.
Her hands were cups of kindness, her heart an open door.
Send us, O Christ, your body, where people cry in pain,
And touch them with compassion to make them whole again.
For Eunice and for Lois, we sing our thanks and praise.
Young Timothy they nurtured and led him in your ways.
Raise up in ev’ry household true teachers of your word
Whose lives will bear clear witness to Christ, our risen Lord.
All praise to God the Father! All praise to Christ the Son!
All praise the Holy Spirit, who binds the Church in one!
With saints who went before us, with saints who witness still,
We sing glad alleluias and strive to do Your will.
🎼🎶🎵🎶🎵🎻🎹🎼🎶🎶🎶🎶🎹
Inhale: O Lord, exhale: give me hope for the future! How lovely are these words and how I will lean into them today. Today is a day that the unknowing and uncertainty of my situation is weighing on my heart. I do not know why h is home from work day after day but continues to get paid. I do not know the people he is going on vacation with in a few days. I do not know what all his physical issues are but know that I will expected to care for him in his decline. The list goes on and on and I feel like I am drowning.
Prayers for Jill and her ever improving health, may it continue.
Prayers for Marcy, that the MRI reveals a way to resolve the swelling and pain. Happy Birthday dear sister!!! Please enjoy the wonderful flan and revel in Lucy Lou’s love and know that I love you.
Prayers for Ally and David, may both grow strong physically. Ally, you are a wonderful Christian example as your faith at this time is unwavering and you seem stronger despite the unexpected news and blunt manner your bosses chose to inform you and your coworkers. Prayers for you and your coworkers. Thank you for your example.
Prayers for April and her selfless act of kindness for the gardener and her fellow condo dwellers.
Prayers for Robert and may he celebrat a wonderful Father’s day with his family.
Prayers, thank you and good health dear UR one and all
If you go to the UR app and click the daily tab you will see New Every Morning and if you click this it will bring up all the previous posts.
My “life verse” is Jeremiah 29:11. This is especially meaningful in my life just now, facing what feels like an uncertain future. As I lap up the honey of God’s wisdom, I ask that God to let it coat my heart so that in moments of doubt, I will remember that God’s plans for me are for good and not evil and to give me a hope and a future. My prayer warrior friend Maria says this is a time of opening doors. A door is opening to David and me. In this season of change, my plan is to add more regular times of prayer to my day, to stick to a routine even though I may not be going to work, and to use the quiet times of my day for reflection and meditation. I am starting an exercise program and am putting together menus of easy to prepare healthy meals. I will also work on some opportunities for flexible employment. I ask God to help me to make the best use of my time. Amen.
David continues to grow stronger and I do believe he feels better than he has since coming home from rehab. I thank God for the huge blessings of David’s healing and recovery. Another Amen.
Jill, glad to hear that you feel well enough to walk and jog. Praying for healing of GI system and for strength and energy. Marcy, Happy Birthday! I pray your PT helps your pain and you have a really great day! Julie, prayers continue as you seek God’s wisdom and counsel for your home situation. Still praying for your kitties. I lift up all needs I see here to the Lord and pray that we all seek God’s wisdom today. Blessings to all!
Happy Birthday Marcy! Thanks Julie for the refresher on how to find previous posts to New Every Morning. Staying cool with AC, we all have our ranges of what we consider HOT or COLD. Floridians would laugh at my HOT, I at their COLD. Finally got the airbrush out and going, the results are what I am looking for, on to the next step. Thanks for the prayer list names, Marcy. my memory did pretty well, but surely was not 100%. It has taken many years and churches to finally find meaningful Bible study . Thank You, Lord. Search and you shall find. Knock and it will be opened to you. An important day for all Americans, but especially for African-Americans. Should be a national holiday. Thank You, Lord.
Happy birthday Marcy!! May you have an awesome day and year ahead. Hoping the PT will help you, please keep us posted. I have never heard of the lovely song about women you shared. It was great to read all the names and remember their part in spreading the Word.
Out in the yard early today to finish up. I now have another name ” the lady with the bucket” and so it will be as I am out scouting for the weeds. Thanks for following along with me as I connect nature and scripture. Yes, the vine and the branches Julie. Yesterday I moved some stones to pull weeds and was thinking of David and Goliath and the 5 stones. I loved your adventure with the vine Jill….hopefully it is under control for awhile.
How can you open yourself both physically and spiritually to God’s hope for your future? Being mindful to be open, ready to receive whatever God has in store for me. I may hope for a defined something, but being ready to receive what God has in mind for me keeps me open to acknowledging that He is in control.
It is concerning that the rates of coronavirus are increasing so rapidly. Heavenly Father, please watch over your world during this time and guide us through this uncertain time.
Blessing to all, you are a beloved child of God and He holds you in the palm of His hand.
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