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 22: 34-39 ‘The Greatest Commandment’
34 When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, 35 and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 ’Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?’ 37 He said to him, ‘“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” 38 This is the greatest and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.”
During the time of lockdown, amongst all the negative things people have had to endure and the difficulties they have had to overcome, many of us have also been given a special gift – and that is time to stop and think. Because there have been fewer demands made and days have not been controlled with one eye on the clock, there are moments when we have been able to just ‘stop and be’. What a precious gift it is, and yet one we take so much for granted. God offers us unlimited time and is available for us to talk to Him at any time of the day or night. And yet we give Him so little of our time in return.
Perhaps over recent weeks and months we may have been more aware of time and taken the opportunity to reflect on our lives. To realise just how important God’s love is, and how much we depend on that love being constant and unchanging, giving us strength in times of weakness and hope when all around there is despair. Time to realise we love God with all our heart, with all our soul and with all our mind. It’s reminiscent of that traditional prayer: “When all is silent in the still and soundless air, I reverently bow my head to my almighty God.”
Perhaps also in recent times it has been a real opportunity to keep the second commandment? Because of the unique situation we find ourselves in we are more aware of the needs of others and have reached out to family, friends, neighbours and often strangers offering a helping hand, a word of encouragement or a promise of prayer. We have gone out of our way at least to try to love our neighbour as we love ourselves in the hope of pleasing God.
In years to come when we look back I wonder if we will remember the value we put on this unique opportunity to reflect on the purpose of our life and what we do with the time we have been given.
Prayer: by C.J.N. Child
We thank you, O Father, for your readiness to hear and to forgive; for your great love to us, in spite of our unworthiness; for the many blessings we enjoy above our deserving, hoping or asking. You have been so good to us in our ingratitude, thoughtlessness and forgetfulness of you. For your pity, long-standing, gentleness and tenderness we bow our heads in humble thankfulness of heart. We worship you who are infinite love, infinite compassion, infinite power. Accept our praise and gratitude; through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Amen.
Reflection and Prayer © 2020 Nancy Davis.
Prayer by C.J.N. Child © 1996 Lion Prayer Collection by Mary Batchelor.
Image freely available online.
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All material within this order of worship is reproduced by permission under CCL 1226356