Friday September 11, 2020

Begin this new day by praying this prayer out loud. As you are able, consider kneeling as a physical expression of your commitment to Jesus as Lord of your life and the one you desire to lead you this day. Alternatively, you might consider placing a hand over your heart as you pray this prayer.

I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt.
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low for thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.

The Wesley Covenant Prayer was written by Rev. John Wesley, the 18th century Anglican priest who was the founder of the Methodist Movement.

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything that you do flows from it.
Proverbs 4:23

According to Jesus, we live life from the Inside-out. In Luke 6, verse 45, he says,

A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

This is a continual challenge to our normal way of thinking. We tend to see what happens within us as dependent on what is happening around us. We believe the lie that we are “controlled” by life’s hills and valleys. Like everything else that Jesus teaches, seeing our lives as having the potential to be fully free of external circumstance is a radically different way of understanding life.

How do these words of Jesus speak to your understanding of this verse from Proverbs that has been our focus this week?

When you are finished with your time of reflection, close out this time with this prayer.

Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought me in safety to this new day: Preserve me with your mighty power, that I may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all I do direct me to the fulfilling of your purpose, through Jesus Christ my Lord. AMEN.