Daily Devotion 11 February 2021

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.

Matthew 5:16 ‘Light Shining in the World’

16 Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Klara Munkres lived in Missouri in the States from 1879 to 1971. Her poem, ‘Kitchen Prayer’, is one I’ve known for a long time and although the words speak in mundane terms, the thought expressed is nonetheless profound.

Lord of all pots and pans and things
Since I’ve not time to be
A saint by doing lovely things or
Watching late with Thee
Or dreaming in the dawn light or
Storming Heaven’s gates
Make me a saint by getting meals and
Washing up the plates.
Although I must have Martha’s hands,
I have a Mary mind
And when I black the boots and shoes,
Thy sandals Lord I find.
I think of how they trod the earth,
What time I scrub the floor
Accept this meditation Lord,
I haven’t time for more.
Warm all the kitchen with Thy love,
And light it with Thy peace
Forgive me all my worrying
And make my grumbling cease.
Thou who didst love to give men food,
In room or by the sea
Accept this service that I do,
I do it unto Thee.

If we’re serious about being conformed into the image of Jesus, we need to follow his example and every thought we think, every word we speak, and every act we do will be for the purpose of glorifying God. Irenaeus, a first century bishop and theologian said “The glory of God is a human person fully alive”. We can’t be fully alive unless we are glorifying God. So how do we do this?

We begin with faith – believing that God exists and that what he says is true. The fuel for our faith is the Bible, the word of God. We read his word, so that we grow in knowledge and understanding. The more we read and study and learn, the more we will believe and trust God in all things. So we glorify God in our faith.

Then we glorify God with our love, by enjoying our relationship with him. God shows his love for us in the gift of his Son and in so much that we experience in our daily lives. We glorify him by gladly returning that love: “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

We glorify God with our obedience, doing his will not our own, obeying the commandments of God. Dying to self is a part of obedience – we need to deny ourselves and pick up our cross daily.

Finally, we glorify God in our witness, by sharing the gospel in our words and our actions. This comes from a heart full of thankfulness for God’s huge generosity to us.

In the words of the Westminster shorter catechism, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.” What greater aspiration could we have!

Prayer:

Oh Lord our God,
we long to be people whose lives are living testimonies to your goodness and grace,
and whose desire is to live our lives
to glorify you.
Take our lives Lord and may your will be done in all we say and do today.
Use us as vessels to your praise and glory.
This we ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Reflection and Prayer © 2021 Ann Caffyn.
Image freely available online.

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