You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free
(John 8:32; NLT).
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Meditation doesn’t mean
Observing our thoughts dispassionately,
Then simply letting them go.
Instead, it’s an opportunity
To grasp our secret thoughts
So we can hear them –
For then
We will learn the truth
About ourselves.
A wise person thinks a lot about death (Ecclesiastes 7:4; NLT).
Be strong and courageous! (Psalm 31:24; NLT).
Whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord (Romans 14:8; NIV).
The spirit returns to God who gave it (Ecclesiastes 12:7; NIV).
Return, O my soul, to your rest (Psalm 116:7: ESV).
Lord,
When it’s time
For me to die,
Please give me
The courage
And strength
I need,
So I can let go of life,
At last,
And grasp your hand
Instead.
If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river
(Isaiah 48:18; NIV).
Father,
We don’t need your intervention!
We’re destroying
This beautiful world
All by ourselves.
It’s only taken a few thousand years
For us to reach this point
Of exploitation and hostility.
Yet, even now,
Perhaps it’s not too late.
Lord,
Help us to grasp
The utter folly of our selfishness and hatred.
Help us to share
Our limited resources fairly,
And to respect each others’ differences.
Then we will learn
To love our neighbours
As ourselves,
Living at peace together,
And sharing your beautiful, fragile world,
Until you choose bring it to an end.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
Love
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have the power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge (Ephesians 3:17-19; NIV).
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them (1 John 4:16; NIV).
Father,
You know all about me –
You know exactly
What I’m like.
So it’s impossible
For me to grasp
Why you should love me –
Or how much!
Lord, thank you
For loving me,
And thank you
For being love.
Contemplation
Father,
Please help me
To put each burden,
Distraction
And sin
Behind me,
As I seek you
In contemplation.
Help me to reach out to you
In the darkness,
And to grasp your guiding hand.
Please forgive my sins,
My foolishness,
My ignorance
And my inadequacy.
Allow me to draw near you,
For the sake of your Son,
Who died for me,
Amen.
