January 26
Quote: “When God makes a covenant with us, God says: ‘I will love you with an everlasting love. I will be faithful to you, even when you run away from me, reject me, or betray me.’ “ Henri Nouwen
Meditation: God does not coerce us. God invites us. God wants us to live and his words are meant to protect and foster life. His relationship with us is not that of a contract, where both parties only remain in relationship if all conditions within their contract are met. The moment one party does not abide by the contract, the relationship ends. No, God’s covenant with us goes way back. God’s promise throughout history reflects a faithfulness that surpasses any idea of contract. Just as marriage is meant to be a covenant based on love that remains through good and bad times, God’s covenant with us humans is everlasting. We cannot fall out of God’s grace. We can choose not to listen. We can choose even to end life. But God’s intention for us is life everlasting and to fill us with his loving words that nurture life, health and growth.
Prayer: Loving God, your way of being in relationship models a love that is too big for us to fully comprehend. We want to listen, so that we may live. In the meantime, hold us in your covenant. Hold us, so that we learn to listen, grow in our ability to take in your amazing grace and find life that is more than just surviving. Amen
Isaiah 55:3 “Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.”
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