Lent Devotional 2021 - Pittsburg - Flipbook - Page 19
salvation, and life forever in your presence. Help us to dwell
with you, whether it is currently in the human body, where
your grace is being infused, or in the future beyond the
grave, where there will be no temporal interruptions or
distractions. Set us free from sin, shame, and skepticism;
then bring us to the place where we may fully trust you,
confidently obey you, and joyfully accept your gift of
salvation. This we pray in the name of the sacrificial Lamb,
Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
FRIDAY, MARCH 12, 2021
The Rev. Joseph W. Hedden Jr. ’97
SCRIPTURE
Jeremiah 11:1-8, 14-17
1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 Hear
the words of this covenant, and speak to the people of Judah
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 3 You shall say to them,
Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Cursed be anyone
who does not heed the words of this covenant, 4 which I
commanded your ancestors when I brought them out of
the land of Egypt, from the iron-smelter, saying, Listen to
my voice, and do all that I command you. So shall you be
my people, and I will be your God, 5 that I may perform
the oath that I swore to your ancestors, to give them a land
flowing with milk and honey, as at this day. Then I answered,
“So be it, LORD.” 6 And the LORD said to me: Proclaim
all these words in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of
Jerusalem: Hear the words of this covenant and do them.
7 For I solemnly warned your ancestors when I brought them
up out of the land of Egypt, warning them persistently, even
to this day, saying, Obey my voice. 8 Yet they did not obey
or incline their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness
of an evil will. So I brought upon them all the words of this
covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did not.
. . . 14 As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry
or prayer on their behalf, for I will not listen when they call to
me in the time of their trouble. 15 What right has my beloved
in my house, when she has done vile deeds? Can vows and
sacrificial flesh avert your doom? Can you then exult? 16 The
LORD once called you, “A green olive tree, fair with goodly
fruit”; but with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to
it, and its branches will be consumed. 17 The LORD of hosts,
who planted you, has pronounced evil against you, because
of the evil that the house of Israel and the house of Judah
have done, provoking me to anger by making offerings to
Baal.
stop praying for your congregation? I think we would all say,
“I certainly hope not.” Indeed, prayer for me is sometimes a
last refuge when I can’t think of what else I could do for or
with someone!
But here in Jeremiah we are not dealing with normal times
or a normal command. First, this passage is not about what
Jeremiah wants so much as what God wants. Jeremiah may
desire to pray—we don’t know. But God commands the
prophet not to “waste his breath,” so to speak. Second, what
might cause God to issue such a command? Perhaps God will
only work with those who want to be part of the covenant
agreement. If there is no mutuality, there can be no prayer,
in other words. Have the sinful so tested God’s patience and
willfully ignored God’s warning (v. 7) that prayers fall unheard
to the ground?
I don’t pretend to know. But there is one thing I do notice
here, and it is God’s command to listen in verse 4. In my best
moments of prayer, I listen well to God and try to follow the
divine command. In my worst, my prayer time is devoid of
listening; I’m too busy speaking to let God speak!
PRAYER
God, when I think I have it all figured out, correct me. When
I think I know better than you do how to run the world,
enlighten me. When I can hear every other sound under the
sun but your voice, help me to listen. Amen.
SATURDAY, MARCH 13, 2021
The Rev. Rebecca McGreevy Hickok ’93
SCRIPTURE
Psalm 149
1 Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise
in the assembly of the faithful. 2 Let Israel be glad in its
Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King. 3 Let
them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him
with tambourine and lyre. 4 For the Lord takes pleasure in his
people; he adorns the humble with victory. 5 Let the faithful
exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their couches. 6 Let the
high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords
in their hands, 7 to execute vengeance on the nations and
punishment on the peoples, 8 to bind their kings with fetters
and their nobles with chains of iron, 9 to execute on them
the judgment decreed. This is glory for all his faithful ones.
Praise the Lord!
DEVOTIONAL
DEVOTIONAL
Is there a more hopeless verse than Jeremiah 11:14? How can
a prophet be commanded not to pray for the people? Would
it ever reach the point for you pastors and your ministry to
It is Sat., March 13. But . . . it’s not really Sat., March 13.
As I write these words, it’s late June, and my deadline for
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