Daily Devotion 08 June 2020

Create a peaceful space to pause, and allow yourself to feel God’s presence alongside you, as near to you as your own breath. In following the reflection below, as a church we will draw closer to God and to one another as we grow in faith and deepen our sense of belonging to God.

Psalm 100:1-5 ‘All Called to Praise God’

1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Worship the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
3 Know that the Lord is God. It is he that made us,
and we are his we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him, bless his name.
5 For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.

Awake, My Soul – Thomas Ken (1637-1711)
Awake, my soul, and with the sun
thy daily stage of duty run;
shake off dull sloth and joyful rise
to pay thy morning sacrifice.
By influence of the light divine
let thine own light to others shine;
reflect all heaven’s propitious rays
in ardent love and cheerful praise.
Wake, and lift up thyself, my heart,
and with the angels bear thy part,
who all night long unwearied sing
high praise to the eternal King.
Lord, I my vows to thee renew;
disperse my sins as morning dew,
grant my first springs of thought and will,
and with thyself my spirit fill.
Direct, control, suggest this day
all I design, or do, or say;
that all my powers, with all their might,
in thy sole glory may unite.
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise him, all creatures here below;
praise him above, ye heavenly host;
praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

I think this was the first hymn that I learnt in my childhood. My father, a blinded St. Dunstaner used to sing this most days when he got up first thing in the morning! The final verse is known as the Doxology must be one of the most sung in the world – it is often used as a concluding stanza for other hymns. It was written by an Anglican bishop, Rev. Thomas Ken, and once famously sung by prisoners in an overcrowded American prison with an imfamous reputation for harsh conditions. One night, about 10 o’clock, a lone voice sang out from an upper window ‘Praise God, from whom all blessing flow’ and a dozen inmates joined in the second line, twenty more on the third line, and the majority sang the final line ‘Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost’!

As the song died away on the still night, the young man arose and sang ‘Prisons would palaces prove, if Jesus would dwell with me there’. When adversity strikes as it has in the present crisis, it is good to be reminded daily that we can all be uplifted by singing, reading, and praying.

Prayer:

Loving Lord, may we come into your presence today knowing that whatever we do or say may reflect our love of you. We give thanks for all those in the front line of danger and pray for those who have lost loved ones. May we all have opportunities to help where required. In your Name. AMEN.

Reflection, and Prayer © 2020 Derek Scott.
Image and hymn words freely available or no longer in copyright.

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All material within this order of worship is reproduced by permission under CCL 1226356