Christian Reflection and Prayer

For God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us
so very much, that even while we were dead
because of our sins, he gave us life when he
raised Christ from the dead.
Ephesians 2:4 NLT

Amazing grace! how sweet the sound—
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.
Amazing Grace , John Newton (1725-1807)

The gift of forgiveness is often best appreciated
by those who need it the most. The Reverend
John Newton experienced this truth firsthand.
His tombstone tells the story: "John Newton,
clerk, once an infidel and Libertine, a servant
of slavers in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, preserved,
restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach
the faith he had so long labored to destroy.
" These words were written by Newton himself,
a testimony to God's transforming power. After
years as a hardened slave trader, that "wretch"
met Jesus Christ and abruptly turned to defend
the gospel he had so long despised.

Throughout Newton's years of ministry, God's
amazing grace remained central to Newton's
thinking. When it was suggested he retire
(at age eighty-two!) due to poor health and a
failing memory, he responded, "My memory
is nearly gone, but I remember two things:
that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is
a great Savior!"

adapted from The One Year® Book of Hymns
by Mark Norton and Robert Brown, Tyndale
House Publishers (1995), entry for March 17
When a friend makes a mistake, don't rub it
in. Rub it out.
AUTHOR UNKNOWN

Scripture:

33But seek first his kingdom and
his righteousness, and all these
things will be given to you as well.
(Matthew 6:33) NIV

Reflection:

Do you remember what it was like,
when you were a kid, when the
circus or carnival came to town.
I remember it as a real special time
for me. When I was around 10 years
old my father and mother took me to
the carnival. As we were driving, on the
highway, to the carnival my dad noticed
a sign along side the road. It said,
"Balloon Rides $5.00", so my father
asked me if I wanted to take a balloon
ride. Of course without hesitation I said
a loud "Yes". My mother said a loud "No".
So my dad and I went on a balloon ride.
I noticed one thing about that balloon ride that I will
never forget. As we went up in the balloon,
the balloonist takes along sand as ballast,
which he uses to control how fast and high
we rise. When he threw out a little sand
ballast we went higher, then more sand
and still higher. The higher the balloonist
wanted us to go, the more sand he threw
out.
You know its kind of like that with God.
The closer we get to God, the more things
of the world we have to throw out of our lives.
The more we throw out the things of the world,
the nearer we get to God. And you know thats
not easy to do sometimes.
Let go those things of the world and do what
the Master tells you to do: "Lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven". You know
if we keep that in mind. our lives will be a
whole lot better and a whole lot happier.

Prayer:
Psalm 8
O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.
From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings [c]
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
all flocks and herds,
and the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Rev. Joseph Lowery, pastor and civil rights veteran,
gave the benediction at the Inauguration,
calling Americans to pray for the nation and
President Obama.
God of our weary years, God of our silent tears,
thou who has brought us thus far along the way,
thou who has by thy might led us into the light,
keep us forever in the path, we pray, lest our feet
stray from the places, our God, where we met thee,
lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we
forget thee. Shadowed beneath thy hand may we
forever stand true to thee, O God, and true to our
native land.

We truly give thanks for the glorious experience
we’ve shared this day. We pray now, O Lord, for
your blessing upon thy servant, Barack Obama,
the 44th president of these United States, his
family and his administration. He has come to
this high office at a low moment in the national
and, indeed, the global fiscal climate. But because
we know you got the whole world in your hand,
we pray for not only our nation, but for the
community of nations. Our faith does not shrink,
though pressed by the flood of mortal ills.
—Rev. Joseph Lowery, January 20, 2009