Today’s text
Matthew 13:47-51
'Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet that is cast in the sea and brings in a haul of all kinds of fish. When it is full, the fishermen bring it ashore; then, sitting down, they collected the good ones in baskets and throw away those that are no use. This is how it will be at the end of time: the angels will appear and separate the wicked from the upright, to throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. 'Have you understood all these?' They said, 'Yes.'
Prayer
There is no doubt, Jesus; I am more comfortable with the net than the fire. I like your seeking but fear your judgment.
Your seeking consoles me, and it makes sense of this restless soul, ever hungry for a connection it cannot make. Yes, your seeking I know. It is a fever in my blood, a deep yearning in my bones. And it is you, your Spirit seeking and drawing me home.
You cast your net wide to capture the very soul of the universe you have made, a universe alive with your soul, your breath. As am I.
But at the fullness of time not all enter the joy of your nearness, not all enjoy the connection of their heart with your own, not all finally come home to you the source of their soul. And this is sadness.
Sometimes I think it is a sadness you will not bear, that at the end you will have all that is and all will know the joy for which you intended them. Everything will come to the fullness of your life, and you will not allow any to be lost. That’s what I want. But you seem to say I am wrong.
Still, I pray for the salvation of all that is. I pray for the total joy of your universe and every soul in it.
I pray not only for others, but for myself. For all too well, I know: parts of me are not good or upright. Wickedness remains in this soul. So I pray, have your way Jesus. Save us all and all of us.
In all things, may your mercy prevail.
Pr. David L. Miller
http://prayingthemystery.blogspot.com/
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Friday, July 25, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:44-46
'The kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off in his joy, sells everything he owns and buys the field. 'Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls; when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.
Prayer
We all give our substance for something, Jesus. We surrender what is of lesser value to possess life, or at least what our heart imagines will give us life. But if we don’t have you, our desires have taken us on a road to nowhere.
You are the treasure in the field. You are the pearl of great price. You are the life of all that lives. You are the satisfaction of our heart’s desire.
To belong to you, to your rule, is dwell in the embrace of the Love from whom all things burst into being. It is to know satisfaction for the soul’s restless craving for more.
I can never know you enough. I remain ever dissatisfied--and will, until every part of me is saturated with the knowledge of you.
Lead me. Take my feet to the places where I meet and know you as well as this soul can. I grow weary of the longing for more, more love, more life, more hope, more freedom, more of you. Take me there and give me the unfettered freedom to throw my life into your embrace.
My heart craves a treasure not made with hands. And there is still so much I have yet to give you before I can truly live. How the heart aches to be given away for that which is true treasure.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:44-46
'The kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off in his joy, sells everything he owns and buys the field. 'Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls; when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.
Prayer
We all give our substance for something, Jesus. We surrender what is of lesser value to possess life, or at least what our heart imagines will give us life. But if we don’t have you, our desires have taken us on a road to nowhere.
You are the treasure in the field. You are the pearl of great price. You are the life of all that lives. You are the satisfaction of our heart’s desire.
To belong to you, to your rule, is dwell in the embrace of the Love from whom all things burst into being. It is to know satisfaction for the soul’s restless craving for more.
I can never know you enough. I remain ever dissatisfied--and will, until every part of me is saturated with the knowledge of you.
Lead me. Take my feet to the places where I meet and know you as well as this soul can. I grow weary of the longing for more, more love, more life, more hope, more freedom, more of you. Take me there and give me the unfettered freedom to throw my life into your embrace.
My heart craves a treasure not made with hands. And there is still so much I have yet to give you before I can truly live. How the heart aches to be given away for that which is true treasure.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
July 22, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:31-33
He put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air can come and shelter in its branches. He told them another parable, 'The kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.
Prayer
You do not care much for appearances, do you Jesus? The large, the impressive, the great, the unusual--these categories hold little attraction for you.
You are captured by the small, the insignificant, the weak, the unimpressive and unpromising. For you the small is great; the weak are strong; the insignificant holds the secret of the universe.
And what is more insignificant than an iterant preacher who is arrested, taken from his rag tag followers, and executed by the authorities under the absurd charge of sedition? Certainly, you were small, insignificant in the world of the powerful and important, and weak, having no force but your words.
You sowed those words, and they could not be killed, not then or now. They took root and grew into a harvest of faith, of hope and love in the life of the world and the soil of our souls.
Nothing can kill this seed and the verdant growth of eternal life they produce even now in our lives. I don’t know Jesus: is our faith the tree that grows from your seed, giving rest to our sols and the lives of all who find shelter in your love growing with us?
Or is the tree that grows your kingdom, your rule, in which we and all life is invited to find shelter. Perhaps both ideas work.
I know only that the seed that was sown grows, and it provides shelter for this soul, a soul in which others, too, have found rest and shelter. And that thought makes me smile, for I know that your seed has had its way also in me.
May it always be so … that your joy and mine may be complete.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:31-33
He put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air can come and shelter in its branches. He told them another parable, 'The kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.
Prayer
You do not care much for appearances, do you Jesus? The large, the impressive, the great, the unusual--these categories hold little attraction for you.
You are captured by the small, the insignificant, the weak, the unimpressive and unpromising. For you the small is great; the weak are strong; the insignificant holds the secret of the universe.
And what is more insignificant than an iterant preacher who is arrested, taken from his rag tag followers, and executed by the authorities under the absurd charge of sedition? Certainly, you were small, insignificant in the world of the powerful and important, and weak, having no force but your words.
You sowed those words, and they could not be killed, not then or now. They took root and grew into a harvest of faith, of hope and love in the life of the world and the soil of our souls.
Nothing can kill this seed and the verdant growth of eternal life they produce even now in our lives. I don’t know Jesus: is our faith the tree that grows from your seed, giving rest to our sols and the lives of all who find shelter in your love growing with us?
Or is the tree that grows your kingdom, your rule, in which we and all life is invited to find shelter. Perhaps both ideas work.
I know only that the seed that was sown grows, and it provides shelter for this soul, a soul in which others, too, have found rest and shelter. And that thought makes me smile, for I know that your seed has had its way also in me.
May it always be so … that your joy and mine may be complete.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:36-43
Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, 'Explain to us the parable about the darnel in the field.' He said in reply, 'The sower of the good seed is the Son of man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the Evil One; the enemy who sowed it, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of falling and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the upright will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Anyone who has ears should listen!
Prayer
We await your promise, Jesus. You will complete what you have started, and all that causes falling and all that is evil will be gone.
We can’t imagine such a world. We watch the morning news, and we know: If it bleeds, it leads. Headline news is tragic news, bad news, sorrowful news, news laced with tears and struggle. That’s what first attracts our attention and too much of our conversation.
But you invite another way. Amid the bad news, amid the struggle of living entangled in the life’s inevitable weeds, raise your eyes and hope. Raise your hopes and praise. Raise your praise to the sower of the seed. For even now the seed pushes and strains to the harvest--even in the depths of your soul.
That one, the Holy Mystery, the Loving God, will bring in a harvest of life beyond imagining. Even now it stirs in your heart. Rejoice, there is nothing to fear. The harvest comes.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:36-43
Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, 'Explain to us the parable about the darnel in the field.' He said in reply, 'The sower of the good seed is the Son of man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the Evil One; the enemy who sowed it, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of falling and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the upright will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Anyone who has ears should listen!
Prayer
We await your promise, Jesus. You will complete what you have started, and all that causes falling and all that is evil will be gone.
We can’t imagine such a world. We watch the morning news, and we know: If it bleeds, it leads. Headline news is tragic news, bad news, sorrowful news, news laced with tears and struggle. That’s what first attracts our attention and too much of our conversation.
But you invite another way. Amid the bad news, amid the struggle of living entangled in the life’s inevitable weeds, raise your eyes and hope. Raise your hopes and praise. Raise your praise to the sower of the seed. For even now the seed pushes and strains to the harvest--even in the depths of your soul.
That one, the Holy Mystery, the Loving God, will bring in a harvest of life beyond imagining. Even now it stirs in your heart. Rejoice, there is nothing to fear. The harvest comes.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
July 16, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:36-43
Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, 'Explain to us the parable about the darnel in the field.' He said in reply, 'The sower of the good seed is the Son of man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the Evil One; the enemy who sowed it, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of falling and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the upright will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Anyone who has ears should listen!
Prayer
Judgment comes, but not just at the end of the age. It comes now.
It arrives with each moment of awareness in which I realize (again) that I have not lived the love which you sow in the soil of this soul. I have judged harshly, contributing to the great volume of hard-hearted lovelessness that fills the world, turning our teeth on edge and teaching (again) that distrust is wisdom and suspicion is prudent. All of which leaves us poorer.
The seed you sow is good. It grows into a harvest of beautiful soul and gracious care for your world. Like waves of wheat swaying in the wind, we are your growing field, swaying with the currents of your Spirit, a gorgeous dance of life and love. And yet, the darnel, the weeds are sown in our souls, too. And too soon we depart the dance and march to the beat of our anger, fear and woundedness, contributing poisonous fruit to a world already toxic.
So are we, Jesus, those to be gathered in the fire for burning? Or will the seed of your life grow despite the weeds? May we yet be the fruit of your good seed, shining like the sun? What have you to say to us, the mixed fruit?
Water the seed, you say. It will grow into the beauty of my harvest, and you will know it in yourselves. Listen. The power of my love is in the seed.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:36-43
Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, 'Explain to us the parable about the darnel in the field.' He said in reply, 'The sower of the good seed is the Son of man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the Evil One; the enemy who sowed it, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of falling and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the upright will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Anyone who has ears should listen!
Prayer
Judgment comes, but not just at the end of the age. It comes now.
It arrives with each moment of awareness in which I realize (again) that I have not lived the love which you sow in the soil of this soul. I have judged harshly, contributing to the great volume of hard-hearted lovelessness that fills the world, turning our teeth on edge and teaching (again) that distrust is wisdom and suspicion is prudent. All of which leaves us poorer.
The seed you sow is good. It grows into a harvest of beautiful soul and gracious care for your world. Like waves of wheat swaying in the wind, we are your growing field, swaying with the currents of your Spirit, a gorgeous dance of life and love. And yet, the darnel, the weeds are sown in our souls, too. And too soon we depart the dance and march to the beat of our anger, fear and woundedness, contributing poisonous fruit to a world already toxic.
So are we, Jesus, those to be gathered in the fire for burning? Or will the seed of your life grow despite the weeds? May we yet be the fruit of your good seed, shining like the sun? What have you to say to us, the mixed fruit?
Water the seed, you say. It will grow into the beauty of my harvest, and you will know it in yourselves. Listen. The power of my love is in the seed.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:1-9
[Jesus] put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, then the darnel appeared as well. The owner's laborers went to him and said, "Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?" He said to them, "Some enemy has done this." And the laborers said, "Do you want us to go and weed it out?" But he said, "No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn."
Prayer
I listen, Jesus, and you ask me a question: How do you see?
Your meaning is clear enough. Do you see the beauty of the wheat swaying in the wind, having burst from the cramped confines of the seed? Or do you see the weeds blemishing the scene, unwelcome interruptions amid the tall grain aglow in summer sun.
Perhaps you see both. But if so, does your heart brim with hope as you celebrate the promise of the seed’s growth, or does the presence of weeds spoil it for you? Do your eyes move more quickly to the ugly tangle of ragged weeds than to the beauty of life and hope?
How do you see? You ask again. And your meaning is clear.
You call me to repent and see as you see. You invite us to enter the world of your kingdom, eager to witness your beauty amid the tangled raggedness of life.
And seeing, we rest in the hope. For the seed of your gracious rule will grow into its proper harvest, in us and in our world, in us. Joy lies ever at hand for those who perceive it.
So open our eyes, Lord.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:1-9
[Jesus] put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, then the darnel appeared as well. The owner's laborers went to him and said, "Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?" He said to them, "Some enemy has done this." And the laborers said, "Do you want us to go and weed it out?" But he said, "No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn."
Prayer
I listen, Jesus, and you ask me a question: How do you see?
Your meaning is clear enough. Do you see the beauty of the wheat swaying in the wind, having burst from the cramped confines of the seed? Or do you see the weeds blemishing the scene, unwelcome interruptions amid the tall grain aglow in summer sun.
Perhaps you see both. But if so, does your heart brim with hope as you celebrate the promise of the seed’s growth, or does the presence of weeds spoil it for you? Do your eyes move more quickly to the ugly tangle of ragged weeds than to the beauty of life and hope?
How do you see? You ask again. And your meaning is clear.
You call me to repent and see as you see. You invite us to enter the world of your kingdom, eager to witness your beauty amid the tangled raggedness of life.
And seeing, we rest in the hope. For the seed of your gracious rule will grow into its proper harvest, in us and in our world, in us. Joy lies ever at hand for those who perceive it.
So open our eyes, Lord.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, July 14, 2008
Monday, July 14, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:1-9
[Jesus] put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, then the darnel appeared as well. The owner's laborers went to him and said, "Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?" He said to them, "Some enemy has done this." And the laborers said, "Do you want us to go and weed it out?" But he said, "No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn."
Prayer
Ever-Present Grace, this is how I shall name you this morning. I have no names suitable for you. The best I can do is to speak what you are to me, and thus to know you in the speaking. And you are Ever-Present Grace.
You also are a sower. Every second you sow seeds of faith and love in our lives, yielding a harvest of freedom and joy. But our moments also sow seeds of cynicism, fear and hard-heartedness.
In the supremacy of your divine freedom, you create us to bear the seed of your life to fruition, growing into the full harvest of what you intend for us. We do not know what that is. It lies hidden in the seed. We know only that we will bear resemblance to our brother, Jesus, glistening with the compassion of your divine grace.
And this is all your doing, Loving Mystery. You are the mysterious power of the seed, and I take courage I this.
For, I look at the tangled snarl of my life, unable to determine with confidence what is good and what is not, what is your seed and what yields the foul fruit of cynicism and fear.
But I will not worry, since you command me to turn from anxiety and rest in hope. The seed you sow in love and freedom will yield the loving joy you are.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:1-9
[Jesus] put another parable before them, 'The kingdom of Heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, then the darnel appeared as well. The owner's laborers went to him and said, "Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?" He said to them, "Some enemy has done this." And the laborers said, "Do you want us to go and weed it out?" But he said, "No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn."
Prayer
Ever-Present Grace, this is how I shall name you this morning. I have no names suitable for you. The best I can do is to speak what you are to me, and thus to know you in the speaking. And you are Ever-Present Grace.
You also are a sower. Every second you sow seeds of faith and love in our lives, yielding a harvest of freedom and joy. But our moments also sow seeds of cynicism, fear and hard-heartedness.
In the supremacy of your divine freedom, you create us to bear the seed of your life to fruition, growing into the full harvest of what you intend for us. We do not know what that is. It lies hidden in the seed. We know only that we will bear resemblance to our brother, Jesus, glistening with the compassion of your divine grace.
And this is all your doing, Loving Mystery. You are the mysterious power of the seed, and I take courage I this.
For, I look at the tangled snarl of my life, unable to determine with confidence what is good and what is not, what is your seed and what yields the foul fruit of cynicism and fear.
But I will not worry, since you command me to turn from anxiety and rest in hope. The seed you sow in love and freedom will yield the loving joy you are.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:1-9
That same day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up at once, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Anyone who has ears should listen!'
Prayer
I pray, my Lord, for the seed of your gracious kingdom that I have sown, begging also for the faithful sowing of your beloved of every time and place.
Grant that your seed my take root in the souls of those we have touched in your name that they may come to faith and know you, and that knowing you they may love and serve you.
The seed we sow bears the power of your resurrected life. It finds soil, sprouts and grows. But in the weariness of life and grief, struggle and trial, the youthful plant withers so that we find no life in the preaching of your word and the worship of your glory.
Tempted by dryness, many fall to despair or apathy, some who are near and dear to our hearts. But dearer still to yours.
Grant awareness of your unfailing love to those who feel nothing of your nearness. Restore to them the joy of your salvation.
And if they must wait a time to know your presence, grant them hope that the seed of your life within them has not died.
Empower us also for that task of uplifting the weary that we may be the arms of your gracious embrace.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:1-9
That same day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up at once, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Anyone who has ears should listen!'
Prayer
I pray, my Lord, for the seed of your gracious kingdom that I have sown, begging also for the faithful sowing of your beloved of every time and place.
Grant that your seed my take root in the souls of those we have touched in your name that they may come to faith and know you, and that knowing you they may love and serve you.
The seed we sow bears the power of your resurrected life. It finds soil, sprouts and grows. But in the weariness of life and grief, struggle and trial, the youthful plant withers so that we find no life in the preaching of your word and the worship of your glory.
Tempted by dryness, many fall to despair or apathy, some who are near and dear to our hearts. But dearer still to yours.
Grant awareness of your unfailing love to those who feel nothing of your nearness. Restore to them the joy of your salvation.
And if they must wait a time to know your presence, grant them hope that the seed of your life within them has not died.
Empower us also for that task of uplifting the weary that we may be the arms of your gracious embrace.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:1-9
That same day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up at once, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty Anyone who has ears should listen!'
Prayer
I wonder Jesus, did you look over the crowd and hope?
I hope. I hope everyday to meet hearts and minds where the seed of your kingdom has grown into the beauty of love and the joy of wonder. I hope to be surprised by souls in which I meet and know you.
I hope because I know the power hidden in the seed of a love that dies and rises again. Knowing this, I watch for the beauty of your life secretly growing in the garden of your creation.
It doesn’t look like much of a garden on some days. A tangle of weeds, brambles and thorns seem to overwhelm the luscious promise of spring. But still I see the signs of the seed: a shared laughter, a knowing look, a small kindness, a love that refuses to be repressed, souls who humanize their tiny corner of creation though no one else may notice.
I notice, and I know I am not alone. Your seed grows into a new creation wherever it finds a bit of soil to sprout.
It grows even amid the tangled bramble of my confused soul, making the mess easier to bear. In fact, I have come to laugh at myself more. And there are plenty of failures and oddities there for my amusement. But I think the laughter is a sign of faith. I believe my real life is hidden in the seed of a love that dies and rises … and grows into your tomorrow.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:1-9
That same day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up at once, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty Anyone who has ears should listen!'
Prayer
I wonder Jesus, did you look over the crowd and hope?
I hope. I hope everyday to meet hearts and minds where the seed of your kingdom has grown into the beauty of love and the joy of wonder. I hope to be surprised by souls in which I meet and know you.
I hope because I know the power hidden in the seed of a love that dies and rises again. Knowing this, I watch for the beauty of your life secretly growing in the garden of your creation.
It doesn’t look like much of a garden on some days. A tangle of weeds, brambles and thorns seem to overwhelm the luscious promise of spring. But still I see the signs of the seed: a shared laughter, a knowing look, a small kindness, a love that refuses to be repressed, souls who humanize their tiny corner of creation though no one else may notice.
I notice, and I know I am not alone. Your seed grows into a new creation wherever it finds a bit of soil to sprout.
It grows even amid the tangled bramble of my confused soul, making the mess easier to bear. In fact, I have come to laugh at myself more. And there are plenty of failures and oddities there for my amusement. But I think the laughter is a sign of faith. I believe my real life is hidden in the seed of a love that dies and rises … and grows into your tomorrow.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 13:1-9
That same day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up at once, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty Anyone who has ears should listen!'
Prayer
I give you thanks, almighty God, for the miracle of growth. Everywhere the seed you sow
is imperiled. Yet, I look into my soul and the souls of your beloved and find the wonder
of faith, the fire of hope, the beauty of love.
You say nothing about the sower. Is he anxious about the seed? Does she fear nothing
will grow and that her labor will be in vain, a chasing after the wind? Does he fear that
storms and infestation will destroy the crop before harvest?
No, you say nothing. This is like no farmer I have ever known, and I’ve known more than
a few.
You know what we struggle to believe: the power of your life is in the seed.
Believing this shouldn’t be a problem. A simple gaze into my own heart evokes enough
wonder to bring tears. For growing there is hope I did not plant, a love I did not create, a
faith in the gracious power of your life.
A simple gaze within reveals all I need to know. The seed you plant grows into the
harvest of the love you are. So we sow and rejoice in the miracle of a seed that grows.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 13:1-9
That same day, Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up at once, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty Anyone who has ears should listen!'
Prayer
I give you thanks, almighty God, for the miracle of growth. Everywhere the seed you sow
is imperiled. Yet, I look into my soul and the souls of your beloved and find the wonder
of faith, the fire of hope, the beauty of love.
You say nothing about the sower. Is he anxious about the seed? Does she fear nothing
will grow and that her labor will be in vain, a chasing after the wind? Does he fear that
storms and infestation will destroy the crop before harvest?
No, you say nothing. This is like no farmer I have ever known, and I’ve known more than
a few.
You know what we struggle to believe: the power of your life is in the seed.
Believing this shouldn’t be a problem. A simple gaze into my own heart evokes enough
wonder to bring tears. For growing there is hope I did not plant, a love I did not create, a
faith in the gracious power of your life.
A simple gaze within reveals all I need to know. The seed you plant grows into the
harvest of the love you are. So we sow and rejoice in the miracle of a seed that grows.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 11:25-30
At that time Jesus exclaimed, 'I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 'Come to me, all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.'
Prayer
I feel your joy, Jesus. Your praise of God is spontaneous. It springs fresh from the ecstasy of undiluted gratitude. An irrepressible urge to exclaim ‘thank you’ enraptures you.
Thank you for my life. Thank you for the joyous thing you allow me to do. Thank you that simple hearts may know what no eye has seen. Thank you for the rapture of knowing a love without boundary. Thank you for wrapping your world in belovedness. Thank you for giving me eyes to see it and lips to speak it.
Are these your words, Jesus, or mine?
They are both, of course. Even now you allow me to know your joy. For like you, I witness the wisdom of that Love who holds us both fast. Like you, I bask, and I share it, however imperfectly.
And I witness the divine wisdom of God etched on every face unburdened and released by an incomparable mercy that conquered my heart long ago.
So blessed are you, Lord of heaven and earth, for this heart and all hearts who know you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 11:25-30
At that time Jesus exclaimed, 'I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 'Come to me, all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.'
Prayer
I feel your joy, Jesus. Your praise of God is spontaneous. It springs fresh from the ecstasy of undiluted gratitude. An irrepressible urge to exclaim ‘thank you’ enraptures you.
Thank you for my life. Thank you for the joyous thing you allow me to do. Thank you that simple hearts may know what no eye has seen. Thank you for the rapture of knowing a love without boundary. Thank you for wrapping your world in belovedness. Thank you for giving me eyes to see it and lips to speak it.
Are these your words, Jesus, or mine?
They are both, of course. Even now you allow me to know your joy. For like you, I witness the wisdom of that Love who holds us both fast. Like you, I bask, and I share it, however imperfectly.
And I witness the divine wisdom of God etched on every face unburdened and released by an incomparable mercy that conquered my heart long ago.
So blessed are you, Lord of heaven and earth, for this heart and all hearts who know you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 11:16-19
'What comparison can I find for this generation? It is like children shouting to each other as they sit in the market place: We played the pipes for you, and you wouldn't dance; we sang dirges, and you wouldn't be mourners. 'For John came, neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He is possessed." The Son of man came, eating and drinking, and they say, "Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners." Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.'
Prayer
And just what is wisdom, Jesus? You turn much of our wisdom on its ear.
You forgive the unforgivable. You drink and celebrate in a world of need. You turn from everyday pursuits to surrender to a shadowy reality we can barely see or believe is real. And you ask us to repent and believe a new age even now edges out the old.
You heal and give, bless … and argue, fighting especially with those who make hard distinctions between beloved and benighted.
For, your new age lights up the night. It is a kingdom of constant compassion that invites all to turn from the lies they believe to the truth of a Love who constantly draws near. This is reality. This is truth. Do you not know? Have you not heard? Can you not see it? It appears in places you least expect.
And wisdom? It is that Love who shines on the good and evil alike. It is receiving that seeking Love of whom you are the face, my Jesus. It is surrendering to the mystery of what that Love will make of us.
I have no idea what that is though I know it is well beyond my control. But I look at you, and I know. It is a depth of grace I have yet to know. So in peace, I go.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 11:16-19
'What comparison can I find for this generation? It is like children shouting to each other as they sit in the market place: We played the pipes for you, and you wouldn't dance; we sang dirges, and you wouldn't be mourners. 'For John came, neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He is possessed." The Son of man came, eating and drinking, and they say, "Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners." Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.'
Prayer
And just what is wisdom, Jesus? You turn much of our wisdom on its ear.
You forgive the unforgivable. You drink and celebrate in a world of need. You turn from everyday pursuits to surrender to a shadowy reality we can barely see or believe is real. And you ask us to repent and believe a new age even now edges out the old.
You heal and give, bless … and argue, fighting especially with those who make hard distinctions between beloved and benighted.
For, your new age lights up the night. It is a kingdom of constant compassion that invites all to turn from the lies they believe to the truth of a Love who constantly draws near. This is reality. This is truth. Do you not know? Have you not heard? Can you not see it? It appears in places you least expect.
And wisdom? It is that Love who shines on the good and evil alike. It is receiving that seeking Love of whom you are the face, my Jesus. It is surrendering to the mystery of what that Love will make of us.
I have no idea what that is though I know it is well beyond my control. But I look at you, and I know. It is a depth of grace I have yet to know. So in peace, I go.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, June 30, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 11:16-19
'What comparison can I find for this generation? It is like children shouting to each other as they sit in the market place: We played the pipes for you, and you wouldn't dance; we sang dirges, and you wouldn't be mourners. 'For John came, neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He is possessed." The Son of man came, eating and drinking, and they say, "Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners." Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.'
Prayer
You are as you say, Jesus, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. And me. One word turns the corners of my mouth into a smile: friend. It is as if I have won the cosmic jackpot, and I had nothing to do with it. It came solely as gift and utterly out of the blue.
You are transparent to the face of the Eternal Wonder, the loving joy of Eternity’s heart, the wisdom of God, Immanuel, with us. And you name me as friend, with a host of others, of course.
It does not matter that that you are repeating the charge your opponents threw at you. They got it right. They named you: friend of the tax collector and sinner; friend of the mortal and fearful; friend of the confused and wounded; friend of the burdened and heavy ladened; friend every heart who hungers for home. My friend.
Some smile at this, thinking it naive to imagine one could be friend to the Almighty and All-Merciful Wonder. But it is not me but you, Jesus, who use the word, acknowledging that this is just what you are.
So walk with me this day and through this life, my Friend. Teach me the wisdom only those who love can know.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 11:16-19
'What comparison can I find for this generation? It is like children shouting to each other as they sit in the market place: We played the pipes for you, and you wouldn't dance; we sang dirges, and you wouldn't be mourners. 'For John came, neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He is possessed." The Son of man came, eating and drinking, and they say, "Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners." Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.'
Prayer
You are as you say, Jesus, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. And me. One word turns the corners of my mouth into a smile: friend. It is as if I have won the cosmic jackpot, and I had nothing to do with it. It came solely as gift and utterly out of the blue.
You are transparent to the face of the Eternal Wonder, the loving joy of Eternity’s heart, the wisdom of God, Immanuel, with us. And you name me as friend, with a host of others, of course.
It does not matter that that you are repeating the charge your opponents threw at you. They got it right. They named you: friend of the tax collector and sinner; friend of the mortal and fearful; friend of the confused and wounded; friend of the burdened and heavy ladened; friend every heart who hungers for home. My friend.
Some smile at this, thinking it naive to imagine one could be friend to the Almighty and All-Merciful Wonder. But it is not me but you, Jesus, who use the word, acknowledging that this is just what you are.
So walk with me this day and through this life, my Friend. Teach me the wisdom only those who love can know.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:40-42
[Jesus said:] 'Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 'Anyone who welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will have a prophet's reward; and anyone who welcomes an upright person because he is upright will have the reward of an upright person. 42 'If anyone gives so much as a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple, then in truth I tell you, he will most certainly not go without his reward.'
Prayer
And our reward? It’s you, isn’t it, Jesus?
You are my reward. You are the gift I receive for whatever cup of water I lift to the lips of those who belong to you. I get to know you, the love, the passion, the giving, the mercy, the suffering, the pain of your life. All of it.
And in it all I receive life of a depth and sweetness that transcends my knowing and speaking. A life worthy of the names eternal and everlasting. Your life.
You send us to give the life and blessing you are, only to receive exactly what you are.
That appears to be the way your kingdom works: In giving we receive; in loving we know love; and in dying we live.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:40-42
[Jesus said:] 'Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 'Anyone who welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will have a prophet's reward; and anyone who welcomes an upright person because he is upright will have the reward of an upright person. 42 'If anyone gives so much as a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple, then in truth I tell you, he will most certainly not go without his reward.'
Prayer
And our reward? It’s you, isn’t it, Jesus?
You are my reward. You are the gift I receive for whatever cup of water I lift to the lips of those who belong to you. I get to know you, the love, the passion, the giving, the mercy, the suffering, the pain of your life. All of it.
And in it all I receive life of a depth and sweetness that transcends my knowing and speaking. A life worthy of the names eternal and everlasting. Your life.
You send us to give the life and blessing you are, only to receive exactly what you are.
That appears to be the way your kingdom works: In giving we receive; in loving we know love; and in dying we live.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:40-42
[Jesus said:] 'Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 'Anyone who welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will have a prophet's reward; and anyone who welcomes an upright person because he is upright will have the reward of an upright person. 42 'If anyone gives so much as a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple, then in truth I tell you, he will most certainly not go without his reward.'
Prayer
I see it, Jesus, a cup of cold water. Two hands cup around it lifting it to be received by another. But who?
Then I see your face. You receive the water. With that gift, a human soul connects with your kingdom; human kindness joins with the mercy of your eternal giving.
This is what your face evokes in our hearts. Seeing you, hearing word of a kingdom of grace we don’t make, this raises our hands to give what we can and have to your eternal project of divine kindness.
You evoke what you are in every heart willing to receive your word. So we go to our service expecting to see this miracle of transformation: human hands lifting their cup of cold water in gratitude for the word of grace we are privileged to bear.
Rejection and confusion come to all who follow you. But in every lifted hand bearing gifts of life, we find the blessing of oneness in mercy and mission with sisters and brothers we did not know we had.
So we lift our hands with gifts you have given.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:40-42
[Jesus said:] 'Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 'Anyone who welcomes a prophet because he is a prophet will have a prophet's reward; and anyone who welcomes an upright person because he is upright will have the reward of an upright person. 42 'If anyone gives so much as a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is a disciple, then in truth I tell you, he will most certainly not go without his reward.'
Prayer
I see it, Jesus, a cup of cold water. Two hands cup around it lifting it to be received by another. But who?
Then I see your face. You receive the water. With that gift, a human soul connects with your kingdom; human kindness joins with the mercy of your eternal giving.
This is what your face evokes in our hearts. Seeing you, hearing word of a kingdom of grace we don’t make, this raises our hands to give what we can and have to your eternal project of divine kindness.
You evoke what you are in every heart willing to receive your word. So we go to our service expecting to see this miracle of transformation: human hands lifting their cup of cold water in gratitude for the word of grace we are privileged to bear.
Rejection and confusion come to all who follow you. But in every lifted hand bearing gifts of life, we find the blessing of oneness in mercy and mission with sisters and brothers we did not know we had.
So we lift our hands with gifts you have given.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, June 23, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:40
[Jesus said:] 'Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.
Prayer
Grant us hearts, Jesus, that welcome the presence of your kingdom. Too often our minds are more attuned to ugliness than beauty, quicker by far to see error and find fault than to savor stirrings of your Spirit.
We are more eager to criticize than to praise. Criticism puffs us up, assuring us that we are above the others. But a moment’s guilty pleasure erodes the heart ties you would weave, leaving us so terribly alone.
And it is clear that you are a weaver. In a simple act of welcome, you join our soul with another and your own heart. In a simple invitation, a blessed tri-unity of mutual sharing springs into being, and the holy heart of the Loving Mystery is as incarnate as my fingers on these keys.
So this is your purpose, Jesus. You join us with each other in you to know the heart of the All Loving.
So let us welcome each other, trusting that your gracious kingdom will spring from nothing into life in the simple hospitality of heart and hand.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:40
[Jesus said:] 'Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.
Prayer
Grant us hearts, Jesus, that welcome the presence of your kingdom. Too often our minds are more attuned to ugliness than beauty, quicker by far to see error and find fault than to savor stirrings of your Spirit.
We are more eager to criticize than to praise. Criticism puffs us up, assuring us that we are above the others. But a moment’s guilty pleasure erodes the heart ties you would weave, leaving us so terribly alone.
And it is clear that you are a weaver. In a simple act of welcome, you join our soul with another and your own heart. In a simple invitation, a blessed tri-unity of mutual sharing springs into being, and the holy heart of the Loving Mystery is as incarnate as my fingers on these keys.
So this is your purpose, Jesus. You join us with each other in you to know the heart of the All Loving.
So let us welcome each other, trusting that your gracious kingdom will spring from nothing into life in the simple hospitality of heart and hand.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, June 20, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:38-39
Anyone who does not take his cross and follow in my footsteps is not worthy of me. Anyone who finds his life will lose it; anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.
Prayer
We don’t go looking for crosses, Jesus. Nor should we. You didn’t. You tried to avoid yours, begging the Loving Mystery of God for another way. But there wasn’t, and you knew it.
The cross proved necessary to reveal the heart of God and the heart of a world that does not know God. So you took it up because of who you are; your vocation required it.
Our crosses come to us. We do not seek them. They come amid the labors of love which the Divine Majesty has planted in our hearts. It is so with us, just as with you. Jesus.
So let us be as you. Grant us hope and courage that we may give ourselves to all that you have given us the privilege of loving. Let us know the joy of loving to the full, surrendering ourselves to the precious places and faces of our lives.
For there we will find ourselves … and you.
Our hearts desperately need to be given away.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:38-39
Anyone who does not take his cross and follow in my footsteps is not worthy of me. Anyone who finds his life will lose it; anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.
Prayer
We don’t go looking for crosses, Jesus. Nor should we. You didn’t. You tried to avoid yours, begging the Loving Mystery of God for another way. But there wasn’t, and you knew it.
The cross proved necessary to reveal the heart of God and the heart of a world that does not know God. So you took it up because of who you are; your vocation required it.
Our crosses come to us. We do not seek them. They come amid the labors of love which the Divine Majesty has planted in our hearts. It is so with us, just as with you. Jesus.
So let us be as you. Grant us hope and courage that we may give ourselves to all that you have given us the privilege of loving. Let us know the joy of loving to the full, surrendering ourselves to the precious places and faces of our lives.
For there we will find ourselves … and you.
Our hearts desperately need to be given away.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:32-36
'So if anyone declares himself for me in the presence of human beings, I will declare myself for him in the presence of my Father in heaven. But the one who disowns me in the presence of human beings, I will disown in the presence of my Father in heaven. 'Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth: it is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword. For I have come to set son against father, daughter against mother, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law ... .
Prayer
It has taken me most of a lifetime to be able to declare my love for you in unwelcoming or uncertain contexts. But I have come to know that denying you, Jesus, is denying myself, heart and soul, leaving nothing but an empty shell behind.
I should be grateful for that, and I am. It tells me you are a bigger part of me than 10 years ago or 20 … or … . This is great consolation, for I know what love as lies in the corners of this soul is you, the one I want to know before, above and in all things.
But it is also fearful because I know it remains possible for me to deny you. Troubled places in me remain unconverted from their devout fears. I could yet taste the dusty shell of a self that has lost you. It makes me shudder.
So, too, your words about family. My family has been such grace to me, Jesus, holy and blessed sacrament. I would not be sitting here praising to you were it not for them. I doubt I would be alive, tasting the sweet freshness of this new day. They were your saving arms and hands, your heart and eyes. And I thank you.
How could I turn against them? Yet, my love of you has made me odd, peculiar in some of their eyes. But I no longer mind so much, even as you still manage to love them through me.
I pray never to lose them and that they not be lost to your Spirit. But let nothing, not even these, come between us. I wish never to be alien to you, my Lord, my Life.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:32-36
'So if anyone declares himself for me in the presence of human beings, I will declare myself for him in the presence of my Father in heaven. But the one who disowns me in the presence of human beings, I will disown in the presence of my Father in heaven. 'Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth: it is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword. For I have come to set son against father, daughter against mother, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law ... .
Prayer
It has taken me most of a lifetime to be able to declare my love for you in unwelcoming or uncertain contexts. But I have come to know that denying you, Jesus, is denying myself, heart and soul, leaving nothing but an empty shell behind.
I should be grateful for that, and I am. It tells me you are a bigger part of me than 10 years ago or 20 … or … . This is great consolation, for I know what love as lies in the corners of this soul is you, the one I want to know before, above and in all things.
But it is also fearful because I know it remains possible for me to deny you. Troubled places in me remain unconverted from their devout fears. I could yet taste the dusty shell of a self that has lost you. It makes me shudder.
So, too, your words about family. My family has been such grace to me, Jesus, holy and blessed sacrament. I would not be sitting here praising to you were it not for them. I doubt I would be alive, tasting the sweet freshness of this new day. They were your saving arms and hands, your heart and eyes. And I thank you.
How could I turn against them? Yet, my love of you has made me odd, peculiar in some of their eyes. But I no longer mind so much, even as you still manage to love them through me.
I pray never to lose them and that they not be lost to your Spirit. But let nothing, not even these, come between us. I wish never to be alien to you, my Lord, my Life.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:26-31
'So do not be afraid of them. Everything now covered up will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops. 'Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Can you not buy two sparrows for a penny? And yet not one falls to the ground without your Father knowing. Why, every hair on your head has been counted. So there is no need to be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Prayer
I think I fear me most, Jesus. I can kill my soul right here and now. And sometimes do.
I ignore your prompting. I neglect the things that I know my soul needs to live, the places and practices that dispose my heart to your nearness. I get lost in the noise of living and lose the still voice of silence in which I know you.
I fear me because I so often am confused, unsure what I need for this soul to live, to thrive, to remain supple and free. I confuse temporary moods with deep abiding truths and fail to walk in the ways that are life.
You know me. I make no attempt to hide. It would be futile anyway. I have come to believe that you do, indeed, know every hair on my graying head.
But I do not fear your knowledge of me. It’s the best news I know because what I know of you trumps everything you know of me. In your love I am of immense worth, and so I proclaim what I know: You are love, the love that holds all and will be all in all.
What more can I need?
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:26-31
'So do not be afraid of them. Everything now covered up will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops. 'Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Can you not buy two sparrows for a penny? And yet not one falls to the ground without your Father knowing. Why, every hair on your head has been counted. So there is no need to be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Prayer
I think I fear me most, Jesus. I can kill my soul right here and now. And sometimes do.
I ignore your prompting. I neglect the things that I know my soul needs to live, the places and practices that dispose my heart to your nearness. I get lost in the noise of living and lose the still voice of silence in which I know you.
I fear me because I so often am confused, unsure what I need for this soul to live, to thrive, to remain supple and free. I confuse temporary moods with deep abiding truths and fail to walk in the ways that are life.
You know me. I make no attempt to hide. It would be futile anyway. I have come to believe that you do, indeed, know every hair on my graying head.
But I do not fear your knowledge of me. It’s the best news I know because what I know of you trumps everything you know of me. In your love I am of immense worth, and so I proclaim what I know: You are love, the love that holds all and will be all in all.
What more can I need?
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:24-25
[Jesus said:] Disciple is not superior to teacher, nor slave to master. It is enough for disciple to grow to be like teacher, and slave like master. If they have called the master of the house "Beelzebul", how much more the members of his household?
Prayer
Your words are less about your goodness, Jesus, than about your persecution. You revealed the beauty of the kingdom, yet many rejected and denounced you.
We can never hope to shine so clearly as you, transparent to the Eternal Mystery of God. We look at you and savor what we see, a love that shines on just and unjust alike, assuring us that, yes, there is plenty here for us, too.
I pray to be a window on the grace that holds me, shining with the light that fills you. And this you promise.
But you also promise, or shall I say ‘warn of,’ something far tougher to take. As you were rejected so shall we be. You send us on a journey of revelation in which we reveal the goodness of your face in acts of mercy and healing, in meekness and forgiveness, in prayer for enemies and making peace with our accusers, in accepted suffering and the joy of casting every care on you.
But our journey of witness reveals you also to our own souls as we come to know your sufficiency amid our insufficiency, our lack, our wants, our fears.
You are there and ever will be, especially when we know the rejections than came also to you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:24-25
[Jesus said:] Disciple is not superior to teacher, nor slave to master. It is enough for disciple to grow to be like teacher, and slave like master. If they have called the master of the house "Beelzebul", how much more the members of his household?
Prayer
Your words are less about your goodness, Jesus, than about your persecution. You revealed the beauty of the kingdom, yet many rejected and denounced you.
We can never hope to shine so clearly as you, transparent to the Eternal Mystery of God. We look at you and savor what we see, a love that shines on just and unjust alike, assuring us that, yes, there is plenty here for us, too.
I pray to be a window on the grace that holds me, shining with the light that fills you. And this you promise.
But you also promise, or shall I say ‘warn of,’ something far tougher to take. As you were rejected so shall we be. You send us on a journey of revelation in which we reveal the goodness of your face in acts of mercy and healing, in meekness and forgiveness, in prayer for enemies and making peace with our accusers, in accepted suffering and the joy of casting every care on you.
But our journey of witness reveals you also to our own souls as we come to know your sufficiency amid our insufficiency, our lack, our wants, our fears.
You are there and ever will be, especially when we know the rejections than came also to you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, June 13, 2008
Friday, June 13, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 10:1-8
He summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon who is known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who was also his betrayer. These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: 'Do not make your way to gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town; go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from virulent skin-diseases, drive out devils. You received without charge, give without charge.'
Prayer
Who are we Jesus? We have gathered around you now for the past two millennia. We call upon you in diverse languages and try to discern your way amid the maw of cultures that are at far odds with you.
As often as not, we lose our way. Our times, places and societies exercise far greater power over our identities than do you. Yet, there remains in me a desire to be shaped by you, to live a life that expresses you, a life in which you might recognize a soul that belongs to you.
But I cannot do that alone. It has taken me nearly all of five decades to know this. I need a community that believes the kingdom of heaven is, indeed, near, and hence can give of heart and soul without charge. I need a community that knows and is your compassion, a community where my faults can find forgiveness and a wandering soul can find welcome.
I need those who know your mission to cure and cleanse and raise the dead. (And who are more dead than they who imagine they can truly live without you and the nearness of your rule?).
I want more and more to find myself among this people of hope you create, a people defined by your mission, a people who crave your nearness and who hunger and thirst for the mercy that is your face on our earth.
For this is who we are, why we gather and why our hope is you, alone.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 10:1-8
He summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon who is known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who was also his betrayer. These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: 'Do not make your way to gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town; go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from virulent skin-diseases, drive out devils. You received without charge, give without charge.'
Prayer
Who are we Jesus? We have gathered around you now for the past two millennia. We call upon you in diverse languages and try to discern your way amid the maw of cultures that are at far odds with you.
As often as not, we lose our way. Our times, places and societies exercise far greater power over our identities than do you. Yet, there remains in me a desire to be shaped by you, to live a life that expresses you, a life in which you might recognize a soul that belongs to you.
But I cannot do that alone. It has taken me nearly all of five decades to know this. I need a community that believes the kingdom of heaven is, indeed, near, and hence can give of heart and soul without charge. I need a community that knows and is your compassion, a community where my faults can find forgiveness and a wandering soul can find welcome.
I need those who know your mission to cure and cleanse and raise the dead. (And who are more dead than they who imagine they can truly live without you and the nearness of your rule?).
I want more and more to find myself among this people of hope you create, a people defined by your mission, a people who crave your nearness and who hunger and thirst for the mercy that is your face on our earth.
For this is who we are, why we gather and why our hope is you, alone.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 9:35-10:1
Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest.' He summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
Prayer
We are modern people, Jesus. Our first move, always, is to distance ourselves from such outlandishness. We don’t believe the church has power over demons (whatever they are) or authority to cure the bodies of the broken. This is hardly our task or power. For us, that authority belongs to the medical community.
Our first move upon hearing that someone has been healed after prayer is to explain it away. We abolish the mystery by assuring ourselves it was the result of rational processes human minds can understand and chart.
In the process, we remove any promise or claim your actions might have on us. The sending of your followers becomes just an old story about someone else, long ago and far away.
Still, I wonder: What happens when people believe they have received power from you to free and heal? What happens when we imagine that we are sent with a story that is true, a love that is real? What happens when our hearts are convinced of your conviction to birth a new community fashioned by a compassion that shines on just and unjust alike, not by our ideas of justice?
I wonder if we would then know a power to speak and act and love that does, indeed, heal and set free. We then could heal and release souls from the bondages that reduce us to so much less than your desire for us.
Convince our hearts, Jesus, and send us to a world with a word that is true.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 9:35-10:1
Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest.' He summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
Prayer
We are modern people, Jesus. Our first move, always, is to distance ourselves from such outlandishness. We don’t believe the church has power over demons (whatever they are) or authority to cure the bodies of the broken. This is hardly our task or power. For us, that authority belongs to the medical community.
Our first move upon hearing that someone has been healed after prayer is to explain it away. We abolish the mystery by assuring ourselves it was the result of rational processes human minds can understand and chart.
In the process, we remove any promise or claim your actions might have on us. The sending of your followers becomes just an old story about someone else, long ago and far away.
Still, I wonder: What happens when people believe they have received power from you to free and heal? What happens when we imagine that we are sent with a story that is true, a love that is real? What happens when our hearts are convinced of your conviction to birth a new community fashioned by a compassion that shines on just and unjust alike, not by our ideas of justice?
I wonder if we would then know a power to speak and act and love that does, indeed, heal and set free. We then could heal and release souls from the bondages that reduce us to so much less than your desire for us.
Convince our hearts, Jesus, and send us to a world with a word that is true.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, June 09, 2008
Monday, June 9, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 9:35-37
Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest.'
Prayer
I have seen the harvest, Jesus. Many times. I have climbed the side of grain boxes heaped with wheat and corn. I have dug my hands deep into the grain and pulled them out, kernels running between my fingers. Then I’d do it again for the soul satisfaction of touching earth’s goodness.
In early summer, I’ve stacked bales of fresh hay on the wagon as the rhythmic hump of the baler pushed them from its bowels. We went back and forth across the field under a scorching sky, careful to bale up all the wind rows lest any be lost. Cows get hungry when the grass lies dead and buried under mid-winter snows.
So I’d pound my hands on the bales of sweet alfalfa and clover, stack them high and smile with pleasure at the honey scent in my senses and the joy of being about the business of life.
So I wonder, Jesus, what did you see and sense as you looked at the harvest, the wheat not yet cut, grain still standing in the fields?
I have an inkling. It’s not unique. It’s the same sighing as any human soul who has ever put seed into the ground: “Don’t let it be lost. Let it not be wasted. Let it come to life and grow and yield its fullness. And let me taste and know the goodness of what has been planted.”
It’s a farmer’s prayer, I suppose. I come by it naturally. After all these years of city streets, it remains indelible in my soul. And it tells me my purpose and yours. Your heart is moved by the sweet scent of the harvest. So may we labor with joy to gather the rich yield of human souls, ours and all you love lest any be lost.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 9:35-37
Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to his harvest.'
Prayer
I have seen the harvest, Jesus. Many times. I have climbed the side of grain boxes heaped with wheat and corn. I have dug my hands deep into the grain and pulled them out, kernels running between my fingers. Then I’d do it again for the soul satisfaction of touching earth’s goodness.
In early summer, I’ve stacked bales of fresh hay on the wagon as the rhythmic hump of the baler pushed them from its bowels. We went back and forth across the field under a scorching sky, careful to bale up all the wind rows lest any be lost. Cows get hungry when the grass lies dead and buried under mid-winter snows.
So I’d pound my hands on the bales of sweet alfalfa and clover, stack them high and smile with pleasure at the honey scent in my senses and the joy of being about the business of life.
So I wonder, Jesus, what did you see and sense as you looked at the harvest, the wheat not yet cut, grain still standing in the fields?
I have an inkling. It’s not unique. It’s the same sighing as any human soul who has ever put seed into the ground: “Don’t let it be lost. Let it not be wasted. Let it come to life and grow and yield its fullness. And let me taste and know the goodness of what has been planted.”
It’s a farmer’s prayer, I suppose. I come by it naturally. After all these years of city streets, it remains indelible in my soul. And it tells me my purpose and yours. Your heart is moved by the sweet scent of the harvest. So may we labor with joy to gather the rich yield of human souls, ours and all you love lest any be lost.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, June 05, 2008
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 31:19-24
Yahweh, what quantities of good things you have in store for those who fear you, and bestow on those who make you their refuge, for all humanity to see. Safe in your presence you hide them, far from human plotting, shielding them in your tent, far from contentious tongues. Blessed be Yahweh who works for me miracles of his faithful love (in a fortified city)! In a state of terror I cried,--I have been cut off from your sight!--Yet you heard my plea for help when I cried out to you. Love Yahweh, all his faithful: Yahweh protects his loyal servants, but he repays the arrogant with interest. Be brave, take heart, all who put your hope in Yahweh.
Prayer
You hide us, O Lord. Tucked inside your immensity, wrapped in mother’s arms, hidden in the bosom of eternity, you hold us fast and safe.
But so seldom do we believe it. And less seldom do we walk into the new day convinced utterly of the safety of our souls, the enormity of your embrace, the fierceness of your faithfulness. But today, I do. And today, I will.
Security abides this heart. Not the security of hiding away from the day, but the calm of assurance. I have no assurance that what I want or think I need will come to me. It may not, which likely is just as well. I surrendered the idea that I know what’s best years ago.
Nor have I any particular confidence that I possess sufficient strength, will and insight to thrive at the tasks to which I lay my hand. I am well acquainted with how weak and needy I can be, to say nothing of how distractible. And I no longer feel much shame about it. For the most part, I have given up trying to hide or deny it.
I am what I am. Yours.
Of this I am certain.
And you are unimaginable immensity, wrapping me body and soul in innumerable layers of love’s unfailing embrace.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 31:19-24
Yahweh, what quantities of good things you have in store for those who fear you, and bestow on those who make you their refuge, for all humanity to see. Safe in your presence you hide them, far from human plotting, shielding them in your tent, far from contentious tongues. Blessed be Yahweh who works for me miracles of his faithful love (in a fortified city)! In a state of terror I cried,--I have been cut off from your sight!--Yet you heard my plea for help when I cried out to you. Love Yahweh, all his faithful: Yahweh protects his loyal servants, but he repays the arrogant with interest. Be brave, take heart, all who put your hope in Yahweh.
Prayer
You hide us, O Lord. Tucked inside your immensity, wrapped in mother’s arms, hidden in the bosom of eternity, you hold us fast and safe.
But so seldom do we believe it. And less seldom do we walk into the new day convinced utterly of the safety of our souls, the enormity of your embrace, the fierceness of your faithfulness. But today, I do. And today, I will.
Security abides this heart. Not the security of hiding away from the day, but the calm of assurance. I have no assurance that what I want or think I need will come to me. It may not, which likely is just as well. I surrendered the idea that I know what’s best years ago.
Nor have I any particular confidence that I possess sufficient strength, will and insight to thrive at the tasks to which I lay my hand. I am well acquainted with how weak and needy I can be, to say nothing of how distractible. And I no longer feel much shame about it. For the most part, I have given up trying to hide or deny it.
I am what I am. Yours.
Of this I am certain.
And you are unimaginable immensity, wrapping me body and soul in innumerable layers of love’s unfailing embrace.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, June 02, 2008
Monday, June 2, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 31:1-5
In you, Yahweh, I have taken refuge, let me never be put to shame, in your saving justice deliver me, rescue me, turn your ear to me, make haste. Be for me a rock--fastness, a fortified citadel to save me. You are my rock, my rampart; true to your name, lead me and guide me! Draw me out of the net they have spread for me, for you are my refuge; to your hands I commit my spirit, by you have I been redeemed. God of truth.
Prayer
Yahweh, almighty, all motherly,
our rest and rock,
our refuge and rescue
our home and joy,
our light and life.
You are our clothing,
love enfolding, all possessing,
love surrounding all we are.
You embrace and grace
all life; you are all
good and the good
of all that is
is you.
Through love you made us,
in love preserve us. From
deepest eternity you know
and hold us. Grant our hearts
true knowledge of you.
Save us amid all
uncertainty that certainty
may abide each heart
that all is well,
all shall be well,
and all manner of things will
be well, for all rests
in you,
whose love never wanes
and never will.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 31:1-5
In you, Yahweh, I have taken refuge, let me never be put to shame, in your saving justice deliver me, rescue me, turn your ear to me, make haste. Be for me a rock--fastness, a fortified citadel to save me. You are my rock, my rampart; true to your name, lead me and guide me! Draw me out of the net they have spread for me, for you are my refuge; to your hands I commit my spirit, by you have I been redeemed. God of truth.
Prayer
Yahweh, almighty, all motherly,
our rest and rock,
our refuge and rescue
our home and joy,
our light and life.
You are our clothing,
love enfolding, all possessing,
love surrounding all we are.
You embrace and grace
all life; you are all
good and the good
of all that is
is you.
Through love you made us,
in love preserve us. From
deepest eternity you know
and hold us. Grant our hearts
true knowledge of you.
Save us amid all
uncertainty that certainty
may abide each heart
that all is well,
all shall be well,
and all manner of things will
be well, for all rests
in you,
whose love never wanes
and never will.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, May 30, 2008
Friday, May 30, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 131
Yahweh, my heart is not haughty,
I do not set my sights too high.
I have taken no part in great affairs,
in wonders beyond my scope.
No, I hold myself in quiet and silence,
like a little child in its mother’s arms,
like a little child, so I keep myself.
Let Israel hope in Yahweh
henceforth and for ever.
Prayer
For you my heart longs
in the morning. Calm
I seek, to stable restless
mind, its anxious
doubts caressing,
uncertain that the day--
and I--are sufficient
to the day’s demands.
Be certain, my soul;
insufficient you are,
certainly so, hold no
doubt, but know:
it matters not;
go quiet, undaunted
lay hand to task; hope
attends, love abides;
joy is not absence
of challenge, not
abolition of tension
but holy knowing: Yahweh
keeps you, holds your
life, your moments.
In Yahweh rests all
calm, comes your strength.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 131
Yahweh, my heart is not haughty,
I do not set my sights too high.
I have taken no part in great affairs,
in wonders beyond my scope.
No, I hold myself in quiet and silence,
like a little child in its mother’s arms,
like a little child, so I keep myself.
Let Israel hope in Yahweh
henceforth and for ever.
Prayer
For you my heart longs
in the morning. Calm
I seek, to stable restless
mind, its anxious
doubts caressing,
uncertain that the day--
and I--are sufficient
to the day’s demands.
Be certain, my soul;
insufficient you are,
certainly so, hold no
doubt, but know:
it matters not;
go quiet, undaunted
lay hand to task; hope
attends, love abides;
joy is not absence
of challenge, not
abolition of tension
but holy knowing: Yahweh
keeps you, holds your
life, your moments.
In Yahweh rests all
calm, comes your strength.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 131
Yahweh, my heart is not haughty,
I do not set my sights too high.
I have taken no part in great affairs,
in wonders beyond my scope.
No, I hold myself in quiet and silence,
like a little child in its mother’s arms,
like a little child, so I keep myself.
Let Israel hope in Yahweh
henceforth and for ever.
Prayer
Quiet, I rest,
silent, at home,
in arms of love,
enrapt, needing not,
to speak;
words spell not
what cannot be
spelled or
said or known,
only inhabited,
at rest in arms of
love unspeakable.
Be silent, my soul,
hold still in Thou
who cannot
be held, who
holds all in
mothers’ hands.
Your smallness, O
soul, is your peace,
your place, your
help, your hope,
your might, your
sight, the
wisdom of calm.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 131
Yahweh, my heart is not haughty,
I do not set my sights too high.
I have taken no part in great affairs,
in wonders beyond my scope.
No, I hold myself in quiet and silence,
like a little child in its mother’s arms,
like a little child, so I keep myself.
Let Israel hope in Yahweh
henceforth and for ever.
Prayer
Quiet, I rest,
silent, at home,
in arms of love,
enrapt, needing not,
to speak;
words spell not
what cannot be
spelled or
said or known,
only inhabited,
at rest in arms of
love unspeakable.
Be silent, my soul,
hold still in Thou
who cannot
be held, who
holds all in
mothers’ hands.
Your smallness, O
soul, is your peace,
your place, your
help, your hope,
your might, your
sight, the
wisdom of calm.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 131
Yahweh, my heart is not haughty,
I do not set my sights too high.
I have taken no part in great affairs,
in wonders beyond my scope.
No, I hold myself in quiet and silence,
like a little child in its mother’s arms,
like a little child, so I keep myself.
Let Israel hope in Yahweh
henceforth and for ever.
Prayer
You are my place, Holy One;
knowing you, I know
myself, and surrender my
grasping for that which you
have not intended
for me.
But when I praise you,
when your greatness
envelops my soul,
I am complete, with
nothing to prove, and
needing nothing
but you.
I go to my tasks, my
heart calm, my
soul assured, my
mind clear, my
focus pure, my
hands given to
the work you give,
my true worship.
You are my place, Holy One;
in you I know myself,
my freedom.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 131
Yahweh, my heart is not haughty,
I do not set my sights too high.
I have taken no part in great affairs,
in wonders beyond my scope.
No, I hold myself in quiet and silence,
like a little child in its mother’s arms,
like a little child, so I keep myself.
Let Israel hope in Yahweh
henceforth and for ever.
Prayer
You are my place, Holy One;
knowing you, I know
myself, and surrender my
grasping for that which you
have not intended
for me.
But when I praise you,
when your greatness
envelops my soul,
I am complete, with
nothing to prove, and
needing nothing
but you.
I go to my tasks, my
heart calm, my
soul assured, my
mind clear, my
focus pure, my
hands given to
the work you give,
my true worship.
You are my place, Holy One;
in you I know myself,
my freedom.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 8:1-5
Yahweh our Lord,how majestic is your name throughout the world!
Whoever keeps singing of your majesty higher than the heavens,even through the mouths of children, or of babes in arms,you make him a fortress, firm against your foes,to subdue the enemy and the rebel.I look up at your heavens, shaped by your fingers,at the moon and the stars you set firm -what are human beings that you spare a thought for them,or the child of Adam that you care for him?
Yet you have made him little less than a god,you have crowned him with glory and beauty ….'
Prayer
Joy is our strength,
the joy of praising you,
Yahweh, of waking to
morning’s light, knowing
the breath of life in my lungs is
your first gift to me,
breath whose first purpose
is to praise you, Maker of life,
Craftsman of air.
For you employ your power
to craft creation, clearing a
broad and open space
that life--and me--
may be, that being and joy may
pour into the great emptiness where
nothingness ruled, where crimson
sunsets did not spread the sky, speaking
with ancient voice that life is
your purpose,
your way,
your call,
your all.
Your way fills me with
each daybreak breath, and
praise arises from that
depth of heart that hears
the word
the silent air cries:
I am life and the life
in you is me.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 8:1-5
Yahweh our Lord,how majestic is your name throughout the world!
Whoever keeps singing of your majesty higher than the heavens,even through the mouths of children, or of babes in arms,you make him a fortress, firm against your foes,to subdue the enemy and the rebel.I look up at your heavens, shaped by your fingers,at the moon and the stars you set firm -what are human beings that you spare a thought for them,or the child of Adam that you care for him?
Yet you have made him little less than a god,you have crowned him with glory and beauty ….'
Prayer
Joy is our strength,
the joy of praising you,
Yahweh, of waking to
morning’s light, knowing
the breath of life in my lungs is
your first gift to me,
breath whose first purpose
is to praise you, Maker of life,
Craftsman of air.
For you employ your power
to craft creation, clearing a
broad and open space
that life--and me--
may be, that being and joy may
pour into the great emptiness where
nothingness ruled, where crimson
sunsets did not spread the sky, speaking
with ancient voice that life is
your purpose,
your way,
your call,
your all.
Your way fills me with
each daybreak breath, and
praise arises from that
depth of heart that hears
the word
the silent air cries:
I am life and the life
in you is me.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, May 19, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
Today’s text
Psalm 8:1-5
Yahweh our Lord,how majestic is your name throughout the world!
Whoever keeps singing of your majesty higher than the heavens,even through the mouths of children, or of babes in arms,you make him a fortress, firm against your foes, to subdue the enemy and the rebel.
I look up at your heavens, shaped by your fingers,at the moon and the stars you set firm -what are human beings that you spare a thought for them, or the child of Adam that you care for him?
Yet you have made him little less than a god, you have crowned him with glory and beauty ….'
Prayer
What are we that you should think of us?
What in our tiny lives draws you?
Wrong question. The right one:
Who are you, Loving Mystery,
that you attend to us?
What is it about you
that you care?
I am amazed and moved that you,
Holy Secret, should know me, and more
that you love me. You
whose hands imprison the stars,
whose heart is warm as life,
whose reach stretches beyond the galaxies,
who is as unknowable to me as I
am to the intricate orange ladybug
that flies from my finger to the music
of Ben’s little boy giggles.
Just so, you delight in me, and
for that moment, I get it. I
become the love you are,
the crowning glory of being
human, sharing your beauty,
knowing you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Psalm 8:1-5
Yahweh our Lord,how majestic is your name throughout the world!
Whoever keeps singing of your majesty higher than the heavens,even through the mouths of children, or of babes in arms,you make him a fortress, firm against your foes, to subdue the enemy and the rebel.
I look up at your heavens, shaped by your fingers,at the moon and the stars you set firm -what are human beings that you spare a thought for them, or the child of Adam that you care for him?
Yet you have made him little less than a god, you have crowned him with glory and beauty ….'
Prayer
What are we that you should think of us?
What in our tiny lives draws you?
Wrong question. The right one:
Who are you, Loving Mystery,
that you attend to us?
What is it about you
that you care?
I am amazed and moved that you,
Holy Secret, should know me, and more
that you love me. You
whose hands imprison the stars,
whose heart is warm as life,
whose reach stretches beyond the galaxies,
who is as unknowable to me as I
am to the intricate orange ladybug
that flies from my finger to the music
of Ben’s little boy giggles.
Just so, you delight in me, and
for that moment, I get it. I
become the love you are,
the crowning glory of being
human, sharing your beauty,
knowing you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, May 16, 2008
Friday, May 16, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'
Prayer
‘Yes,’ this is your word to us.
Yes, I am with you. Yes, I always will be. Yes, in deepest sorrow. Yes, when you have lost your way, your sight, yourself. Yes, when you don’t know what to do and when there is nothing you can do.
Yes, today and tomorrow. Yes, on this corner of my good Earth and wherever your feet may take you.
Yes, to the ends of the Earth and the eternity of time.
Yes, for you are never abandoned. You are forever the unforsaken, the beloved, a cradled child. Mine. And my word to you is singular.
Yes.
My saints long before you clung to my ‘Yes’ in circumstances unimaginable, amid joys inexpressible and griefs unbearable. And I was enough for them.
I was their ‘Yes,’ and ever I shall be. For you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'
Prayer
‘Yes,’ this is your word to us.
Yes, I am with you. Yes, I always will be. Yes, in deepest sorrow. Yes, when you have lost your way, your sight, yourself. Yes, when you don’t know what to do and when there is nothing you can do.
Yes, today and tomorrow. Yes, on this corner of my good Earth and wherever your feet may take you.
Yes, to the ends of the Earth and the eternity of time.
Yes, for you are never abandoned. You are forever the unforsaken, the beloved, a cradled child. Mine. And my word to you is singular.
Yes.
My saints long before you clung to my ‘Yes’ in circumstances unimaginable, amid joys inexpressible and griefs unbearable. And I was enough for them.
I was their ‘Yes,’ and ever I shall be. For you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'
Prayer
‘Go,’ you say.
So we go. We go to the joyous task of naming the Love who embraces all time and space. We go with anticipation, expecting to feel your mysterious nearness which pervades this and every universe.
We go with laughter, eager to embrace each child of earth. Help us to hold them in the tenderness in which you hold us.
We go to cradle their infants and lay loving hands on their beloved dead, pouring on each the ancient waters that flow from the Eternal Spring of your divine heart.
We go to teach a way our feet have not mastered and never will. We go to speak a wisdom for which we barely have words, for what words can contain you?
We go because you send us beyond where we have been and what we know to a world you love for reasons we can’t understand.
We go in the grace of your presence, which will never leave or forsake us.
So we go.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'
Prayer
‘Go,’ you say.
So we go. We go to the joyous task of naming the Love who embraces all time and space. We go with anticipation, expecting to feel your mysterious nearness which pervades this and every universe.
We go with laughter, eager to embrace each child of earth. Help us to hold them in the tenderness in which you hold us.
We go to cradle their infants and lay loving hands on their beloved dead, pouring on each the ancient waters that flow from the Eternal Spring of your divine heart.
We go to teach a way our feet have not mastered and never will. We go to speak a wisdom for which we barely have words, for what words can contain you?
We go because you send us beyond where we have been and what we know to a world you love for reasons we can’t understand.
We go in the grace of your presence, which will never leave or forsake us.
So we go.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, May 12, 2008
Monday, May 12, 2008
Today’s text
Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'
Prayer
You spoke to them all, Jesus, those who believed and those who hesitated. Why did they hesitate to fall at your feet?
Did some doubt that it was you, crucified yet alive again? Maybe they wondered if they could believe their eyes. Perhaps, proud, they resisted such humility.
Or they were afraid. If you could come back from the dead, what might you do to those who disappointed and displeased you? And your friends did just that.
They look like the group that circles you on Sunday morning: believing and doubting, fearing and hoping, beaten down and proud, cynical yet with hungry hearts wanting.
But my eyes fix not on them but on you, Jesus. You stand there alive, receiving them all. You send no one away. There is no retribution in your soul, no anger in your bearing, no condemnation in your words.
You speak, your risen voice rising and falling, a gracious music of resurrected welcome embracing the bodies of the all-too-human. Your beloved voice envelops them as beloved and sends them forth as the never forsaken.
All of them, without distinction.
And I know: The voice that speaks with all authority embraces me in my full humanity, loving, wanting and sending me with all my unpredictable quirks and flaws, fears and faith.
All that matters is that voice that receives us all.
Pr. David L. Miller
Matthew 28:16-20
Meanwhile the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had arranged to meet them. When they saw him they fell down before him, though some hesitated. Jesus came up and spoke to them. He said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of time.'
Prayer
You spoke to them all, Jesus, those who believed and those who hesitated. Why did they hesitate to fall at your feet?
Did some doubt that it was you, crucified yet alive again? Maybe they wondered if they could believe their eyes. Perhaps, proud, they resisted such humility.
Or they were afraid. If you could come back from the dead, what might you do to those who disappointed and displeased you? And your friends did just that.
They look like the group that circles you on Sunday morning: believing and doubting, fearing and hoping, beaten down and proud, cynical yet with hungry hearts wanting.
But my eyes fix not on them but on you, Jesus. You stand there alive, receiving them all. You send no one away. There is no retribution in your soul, no anger in your bearing, no condemnation in your words.
You speak, your risen voice rising and falling, a gracious music of resurrected welcome embracing the bodies of the all-too-human. Your beloved voice envelops them as beloved and sends them forth as the never forsaken.
All of them, without distinction.
And I know: The voice that speaks with all authority embraces me in my full humanity, loving, wanting and sending me with all my unpredictable quirks and flaws, fears and faith.
All that matters is that voice that receives us all.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, May 09, 2008
Friday, May 9, 2008
Today’s text
John 7:37-39
On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! As scripture says, "From his heart shall flow streams of living water.” ' He was speaking of the Spirit which those who believed in him were to receive; for there was no Spirit as yet because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Prayer
Come, Holy Spirit. Fill our hearts that we may flow with living water, fresh and free, clean and clear, cold and bracing.
We go from places we know and faces we love, unsure of what awaits in parts unknown. Except this: You.
You play. From most ancient days to unseen endings, you play. It is your way.
Once I thought you worked. But I got it wrong.
Bursting from primordial mountainsides, streams flow free, tumbling over rocks, spilling, foaming, dancing down, splashing into each low space, freshening tried earth, greening the ground.
So you are, Spirit of Life: bubbling fresh and free from primordial depths of the Eternal Generosity whose face we cannot see. You spill and splash, greening the soul, making fresh each dusty place, filling, flowing, a dancing stream of life … even in death’s own face.
And we have seen it. We know the dance in our souls. It’s in our bones and blood.
So come Holy Spirit, play, dance. Carry us wherever you choose. It doesn’t matter where.
Your dancing current is our home.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 7:37-39
On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! As scripture says, "From his heart shall flow streams of living water.” ' He was speaking of the Spirit which those who believed in him were to receive; for there was no Spirit as yet because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Prayer
Come, Holy Spirit. Fill our hearts that we may flow with living water, fresh and free, clean and clear, cold and bracing.
We go from places we know and faces we love, unsure of what awaits in parts unknown. Except this: You.
You play. From most ancient days to unseen endings, you play. It is your way.
Once I thought you worked. But I got it wrong.
Bursting from primordial mountainsides, streams flow free, tumbling over rocks, spilling, foaming, dancing down, splashing into each low space, freshening tried earth, greening the ground.
So you are, Spirit of Life: bubbling fresh and free from primordial depths of the Eternal Generosity whose face we cannot see. You spill and splash, greening the soul, making fresh each dusty place, filling, flowing, a dancing stream of life … even in death’s own face.
And we have seen it. We know the dance in our souls. It’s in our bones and blood.
So come Holy Spirit, play, dance. Carry us wherever you choose. It doesn’t matter where.
Your dancing current is our home.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Wednesday May 7, 2008
Today’s text
John 7:37-38
On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! As scripture says, "From his heart shall flow streams of living water." '
Prayer
A stream flows from my depths, Jesus. A spring bubbles there. It fills the heart and spills into my daily world. Life, peace, joy, blessing, all these well from that primordial place, that virginal point where my soul opens to yours.
From that infinitesimal aperture in the dark reaches of inaccessible soul, that which is you flows ancient and true, fresh and cold, into this life, giving life.
When I dwell in that stream, turning mind and heart to your incessant giving, I live.
So why do I not live from the depths of this bubbling heart? Anxieties and angers, conflicts and fears, old wounds and fresh hurts draw me to live the mood of the moment, detached from that life-giving stream that freshens the soul and keeps me human.
So I return and drink from that stream of grace that flows from you into this heart of mine. And you pull me into its flow. You still my soul and give all I need to live as your beloved, filled and encompassed by an eternal spring.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 7:37-38
On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! As scripture says, "From his heart shall flow streams of living water." '
Prayer
A stream flows from my depths, Jesus. A spring bubbles there. It fills the heart and spills into my daily world. Life, peace, joy, blessing, all these well from that primordial place, that virginal point where my soul opens to yours.
From that infinitesimal aperture in the dark reaches of inaccessible soul, that which is you flows ancient and true, fresh and cold, into this life, giving life.
When I dwell in that stream, turning mind and heart to your incessant giving, I live.
So why do I not live from the depths of this bubbling heart? Anxieties and angers, conflicts and fears, old wounds and fresh hurts draw me to live the mood of the moment, detached from that life-giving stream that freshens the soul and keeps me human.
So I return and drink from that stream of grace that flows from you into this heart of mine. And you pull me into its flow. You still my soul and give all I need to live as your beloved, filled and encompassed by an eternal spring.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, May 5, 2008
Monday, May 5, 2008
Today’s text
John 7:37-38
On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! As scripture says, "From his heart shall flow streams of living water." '
Prayer
I see you there, Jesus. You stand in the midst of the people, crying out your heart. More: I feel you there. I sense your desire, “Let them come and drink.”
But only the thirsty, of course. And that excludes … no one. Certainly not me.
We all thirst. We are made for more, more than we know or possess, more love, more grace, more peace and purpose, more of your blessed presence.
Our thirst is the mark of having been created in your image. And I know something of your image as I watch you at the festival, crying aloud, inviting the thirsty to come, believe and drink in the secret substance of your life.
You fill our souls with all that you are, slaking our ancient thirst, satisfying our desire. And we become flowing springs of your goodness and grace, giving our lives in gentle acts of generosity.
You never cease to keep this promise, Jesus. It is your heart’s desire. So let us believe you and go our ways in peace. For we know: You will give living water to our parched souls in the heat of this and every day.
Pr. David L. Miller
Today’s text
John 7:37-38
On the last day, the great day of the festival, Jesus stood and cried out: 'Let anyone who is thirsty come to me! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! Let anyone who believes in me come and drink! As scripture says, "From his heart shall flow streams of living water." '
Prayer
I see you there, Jesus. You stand in the midst of the people, crying out your heart. More: I feel you there. I sense your desire, “Let them come and drink.”
But only the thirsty, of course. And that excludes … no one. Certainly not me.
We all thirst. We are made for more, more than we know or possess, more love, more grace, more peace and purpose, more of your blessed presence.
Our thirst is the mark of having been created in your image. And I know something of your image as I watch you at the festival, crying aloud, inviting the thirsty to come, believe and drink in the secret substance of your life.
You fill our souls with all that you are, slaking our ancient thirst, satisfying our desire. And we become flowing springs of your goodness and grace, giving our lives in gentle acts of generosity.
You never cease to keep this promise, Jesus. It is your heart’s desire. So let us believe you and go our ways in peace. For we know: You will give living water to our parched souls in the heat of this and every day.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, May 02, 2008
Friday, May 2, 2008
Today’s text
John 17:7-11
Now at last they have recognized that all you have given me comes from you for I have given them the teaching you gave to me, and they have indeed accepted it and know for certain that I came from you, and have believed that it was you who sent me. It is for them that I pray. I am not praying for the world but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All I have is yours and all you have is mine, and in them I am glorified. I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep those you have given me true to your name, so that they may be one like us.
Prayer
Like us … . Two small words spark joy and tears for which I am thankful. They tell me my soul is neither dead nor dull but still able to taste your goodness.
You pray, Jesus, that we be one like you and the Blessed Mystery are one, sharing all that you are so that to see the one is to know the other. And in this case, the Totally Other, the face of God.
You are glorified in us, Jesus, as we hold you fast, abiding in your love and loving to the end of our souls, the end of our abilities, the end of our days. In the loving, we taste and know the goodness of all you share with the Holy One.
It is a feast we shall know when our breath here stops--and now, in the sweetness of sharing, made sweeter by the endings which rush at us: the end of lives, the end of school, the departure of friends and treasured colleagues, the great exodus that takes our souls down the roads you appoint for us.
As we prepare to go, be glorified in us, my brother.
Be glorified in the love you pry out of your hearts to share with those with whom we have been privileged to share our lives. Be glorified in us as we leave to find fresh connections with faces far off for whom you also pray.
Be glorified that we may taste what it is to be like you, one with the Blessed Mystery whose love never departs, even when we must.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 17:7-11
Now at last they have recognized that all you have given me comes from you for I have given them the teaching you gave to me, and they have indeed accepted it and know for certain that I came from you, and have believed that it was you who sent me. It is for them that I pray. I am not praying for the world but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All I have is yours and all you have is mine, and in them I am glorified. I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep those you have given me true to your name, so that they may be one like us.
Prayer
Like us … . Two small words spark joy and tears for which I am thankful. They tell me my soul is neither dead nor dull but still able to taste your goodness.
You pray, Jesus, that we be one like you and the Blessed Mystery are one, sharing all that you are so that to see the one is to know the other. And in this case, the Totally Other, the face of God.
You are glorified in us, Jesus, as we hold you fast, abiding in your love and loving to the end of our souls, the end of our abilities, the end of our days. In the loving, we taste and know the goodness of all you share with the Holy One.
It is a feast we shall know when our breath here stops--and now, in the sweetness of sharing, made sweeter by the endings which rush at us: the end of lives, the end of school, the departure of friends and treasured colleagues, the great exodus that takes our souls down the roads you appoint for us.
As we prepare to go, be glorified in us, my brother.
Be glorified in the love you pry out of your hearts to share with those with whom we have been privileged to share our lives. Be glorified in us as we leave to find fresh connections with faces far off for whom you also pray.
Be glorified that we may taste what it is to be like you, one with the Blessed Mystery whose love never departs, even when we must.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Today’s text
John 17:4-6
And eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I have glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. Now, Father, glorify me with that glory I had with you before ever the world existed. I have revealed your name to those whom you took from the world to give me. They were yours and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.
Prayer
You reveal your glory, Holy One. And it brings us joy when you do.
For your glory is the love that courses through the heart of your Triune life. And you reveal this glory in humble circles of loving care where human souls are truly human.
Drawn into circles of sharing, we name our cares and the places where, amid noise and silence, we know you. We listen and learn we are not alone. Such exquisite knowledge opens our hearts, and you join as one.
We share in common the loving mystery of your life. It flows among us. We see the beauty you are in the face of another you love more than we can know. And we love them too, knowing you in that love.
This is the glory of your life, O three-personed God, to be joined with you and each other in the community of loving care you are. To taste the glory of your life in unity of soul with other souls who know you.
And there, finally, to know you and eternity as well.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 17:4-6
And eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I have glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. Now, Father, glorify me with that glory I had with you before ever the world existed. I have revealed your name to those whom you took from the world to give me. They were yours and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.
Prayer
You reveal your glory, Holy One. And it brings us joy when you do.
For your glory is the love that courses through the heart of your Triune life. And you reveal this glory in humble circles of loving care where human souls are truly human.
Drawn into circles of sharing, we name our cares and the places where, amid noise and silence, we know you. We listen and learn we are not alone. Such exquisite knowledge opens our hearts, and you join as one.
We share in common the loving mystery of your life. It flows among us. We see the beauty you are in the face of another you love more than we can know. And we love them too, knowing you in that love.
This is the glory of your life, O three-personed God, to be joined with you and each other in the community of loving care you are. To taste the glory of your life in unity of soul with other souls who know you.
And there, finally, to know you and eternity as well.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Today’s text
John 17:1-3
After saying this, Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: Father, the hour has come: glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you; so that, just as you have given him power over all humanity, he may give eternal life to all those you have entrusted to him. And eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
Prayer
Grant us your greatest treasure, O God. Pour out your riches and lift us above our poverty of soul. Give us the immensity of your enormity that we may longer scrape by.
For I do. I have ample wealth for food and clothing and shelter. But I scrape through many situations with my soul no longer intact. My actions and words are barren and poor of Spirit. They lack generosity and depth, and fail to voice the joy that marks true knowledge of you.
And all because my mind and heart dwell far from the places where I know you. I dwell in the land of my insufficiency, the territory of anxiety over unfinished tasks and too little time.
I scrape by but fail to thrive and bless. Conversations wind to an end without a word of joy and generosity passing my lips to enrich the poverty of another.
For my soul is poor. I am bedeviled by the next thing I must do, not on sharing the love that gives true knowledge of you and builds community of heart and mind.
This I confess. But much more: I seek to drink the fullness of your Fullness. My great joy is to brim with the elation of this love that fills me as I am here with you. It fills and spills from my soul, running over, a current of life and joy.
So keep me mindful of you and of the love you are. Fill me with knowledge of you that I may live with largess. Give us this, your greatest treasure, and we will be poor of soul no longer.
We shall live, and all we touch will be more alive for the treasure we bear.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 17:1-3
After saying this, Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: Father, the hour has come: glorify your Son so that your Son may glorify you; so that, just as you have given him power over all humanity, he may give eternal life to all those you have entrusted to him. And eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
Prayer
Grant us your greatest treasure, O God. Pour out your riches and lift us above our poverty of soul. Give us the immensity of your enormity that we may longer scrape by.
For I do. I have ample wealth for food and clothing and shelter. But I scrape through many situations with my soul no longer intact. My actions and words are barren and poor of Spirit. They lack generosity and depth, and fail to voice the joy that marks true knowledge of you.
And all because my mind and heart dwell far from the places where I know you. I dwell in the land of my insufficiency, the territory of anxiety over unfinished tasks and too little time.
I scrape by but fail to thrive and bless. Conversations wind to an end without a word of joy and generosity passing my lips to enrich the poverty of another.
For my soul is poor. I am bedeviled by the next thing I must do, not on sharing the love that gives true knowledge of you and builds community of heart and mind.
This I confess. But much more: I seek to drink the fullness of your Fullness. My great joy is to brim with the elation of this love that fills me as I am here with you. It fills and spills from my soul, running over, a current of life and joy.
So keep me mindful of you and of the love you are. Fill me with knowledge of you that I may live with largess. Give us this, your greatest treasure, and we will be poor of soul no longer.
We shall live, and all we touch will be more alive for the treasure we bear.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, April 25, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
Today’s text
John 14:18-21
I shall not leave you orphans; I shall come to you. In a short time the world will no longer see me; but you will see that I live and you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you. Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me; and whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and reveal myself to him.'
Prayer
It is in love you are revealed, Holy One.
In love, we know you. In love, we see you. In love, we understand your command is the love you are, the love you give, the love in us that opens our eyes to see that love is the source and omega point of the cosmos and of our little lives.
In love you make the universe that in love you may join with it. In love you sing your song that all may join with you in seamless harmony.
In love, our brother Jesus entered this garden of your delight revealing the intention of love. And in love you continue to delight in this garden despite its defilement and our determined rejection of your generosity.
For neither defilement nor rejection drives you away. In love your hungry heart hunts out every opening to your love that all may glow with the love you are. And all reveal the beauty of your face.
May we see and be such beauty.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 14:18-21
I shall not leave you orphans; I shall come to you. In a short time the world will no longer see me; but you will see that I live and you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you. Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me; and whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and reveal myself to him.'
Prayer
It is in love you are revealed, Holy One.
In love, we know you. In love, we see you. In love, we understand your command is the love you are, the love you give, the love in us that opens our eyes to see that love is the source and omega point of the cosmos and of our little lives.
In love you make the universe that in love you may join with it. In love you sing your song that all may join with you in seamless harmony.
In love, our brother Jesus entered this garden of your delight revealing the intention of love. And in love you continue to delight in this garden despite its defilement and our determined rejection of your generosity.
For neither defilement nor rejection drives you away. In love your hungry heart hunts out every opening to your love that all may glow with the love you are. And all reveal the beauty of your face.
May we see and be such beauty.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Today’s text
John 14:18-21
I shall not leave you orphans; I shall come to you. In a short time the world will no longer see me; but you will see that I live and you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you. Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me; and whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and reveal myself to him.'
Prayer
You invite me into a great circle of intimate connection, Jesus. You in the Father, me in you, you in me: one great shared love coursing among us.
And there, in that circle of love, to find the secret stream that draws all time and space into its flow.
And that flow is you, Holy One, your triune life.
I have no idea where that blessed current will carry me. But unknowing is a way. So I come again begging.
Carry me in that great flow that has been going on since the universe was darkness. Carry me in the current of love you are. Carry me wherever you please even though I may fight you all the way. Draw me deep and dizzy into the spinning whirlpool where you are in the Father and I in you and you in me.
For then only am I free. Then only do find within this love for your command. Then only do I know, truly know, that I am not and never will be an orphan.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 14:18-21
I shall not leave you orphans; I shall come to you. In a short time the world will no longer see me; but you will see that I live and you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you. Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me; and whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and reveal myself to him.'
Prayer
You invite me into a great circle of intimate connection, Jesus. You in the Father, me in you, you in me: one great shared love coursing among us.
And there, in that circle of love, to find the secret stream that draws all time and space into its flow.
And that flow is you, Holy One, your triune life.
I have no idea where that blessed current will carry me. But unknowing is a way. So I come again begging.
Carry me in that great flow that has been going on since the universe was darkness. Carry me in the current of love you are. Carry me wherever you please even though I may fight you all the way. Draw me deep and dizzy into the spinning whirlpool where you are in the Father and I in you and you in me.
For then only am I free. Then only do find within this love for your command. Then only do I know, truly know, that I am not and never will be an orphan.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, April 21, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Today’s text
John 14:15-17
If you love me you will keep my commandments. I shall ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete to be with you for ever, the Spirit of truth whom the world can never accept since it neither sees nor knows him; but you know him, because he is with you, he is in you.’
Prayer
I have seen the truth, my Brother; in rarest moments of blessedness its Spirit fills me.
The truth is the eyes of a mother gazing into the sleeping face of her new born. It is a loving tenderness before which all words are beggars.
The truth is the sparkling laughter of a two-year old, alight with the fire of joy. It is the abundance of meeting every moment without reserve.
This is the Spirit you send to be with and in us, Jesus, your Spirit: the Spirit of God’s loving delight, the Spirit of God’s great giving, the Spirit of God’s holy joy, the Spirit that bears us into the truth that we might live the truth you are.
It is your commandment that we might be as you, alive with the fire of loving delight. Such life is far beyond our cramped hearts. But you give the Spirit of truth that sweeps us into the flood of holy generosity flowing from the hidden heart of the universe.
So fill us, my Brother. Fill us to overflowing with whatever magic lies behind the eyes of the loving mother and the fiery sparkle of the child.
May we be as full of your truth as they, and you.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 14:15-17
If you love me you will keep my commandments. I shall ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete to be with you for ever, the Spirit of truth whom the world can never accept since it neither sees nor knows him; but you know him, because he is with you, he is in you.’
Prayer
I have seen the truth, my Brother; in rarest moments of blessedness its Spirit fills me.
The truth is the eyes of a mother gazing into the sleeping face of her new born. It is a loving tenderness before which all words are beggars.
The truth is the sparkling laughter of a two-year old, alight with the fire of joy. It is the abundance of meeting every moment without reserve.
This is the Spirit you send to be with and in us, Jesus, your Spirit: the Spirit of God’s loving delight, the Spirit of God’s great giving, the Spirit of God’s holy joy, the Spirit that bears us into the truth that we might live the truth you are.
It is your commandment that we might be as you, alive with the fire of loving delight. Such life is far beyond our cramped hearts. But you give the Spirit of truth that sweeps us into the flood of holy generosity flowing from the hidden heart of the universe.
So fill us, my Brother. Fill us to overflowing with whatever magic lies behind the eyes of the loving mother and the fiery sparkle of the child.
May we be as full of your truth as they, and you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Today’s text
John 14:5-11
Thomas said, 'Lord, we do not know where you are going, so how can we know the way?' Jesus said: I am the Way; I am Truth and Life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father too. From this moment you know him and have seen him. Philip said, 'Lord, show us the Father and then we shall be satisfied.' Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? 'Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father, so how can you say, "Show us the Father"? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? What I say to you I do not speak of my own accord: it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his works. You must believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe it on the evidence of these works. I am.
Prayer
Many ways beckon, Jesus. They promise to make us real, alive and significant, at least in our own eyes. There is the way of knowledge in which we wrap ourselves in words and concepts imagining we can tame reality to our categories.
There is the way of accomplishment in which we consider ourselves more worthy than others, admiring (as we do) the distance between us and those who have and thus are less.
There is the way of experience in which we pretend to be more real by what we have seen, done and absorbed into memory. There are even ways of claiming our pain to separate and hold ourselves above others, as if pain and finitude were not great levelers of all humanity.
There are not enough words to name all the ways we quest for that elusive life where we finally we become real and the anxious whispers of our emptiness are silenced.
Then there is your way, Jesus. You dwell as one with the Loving Mystery for whom we have no good name. You live in utter dependence on a love human flesh cannot command, partaking and sharing a wealth beyond all human endeavor.
You live knowing that all that belongs to this Loving Mystery is yours, and to this One you belong. In this fullness, you act and speak and give what is yours. And you tell me that you are the way, bidding me to trust, to believe and to live in the fullness you share.
May I dwell in your way, my Brother. Only then will my heart become so generous that I will finally be real, beyond this shadow.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 14:5-11
Thomas said, 'Lord, we do not know where you are going, so how can we know the way?' Jesus said: I am the Way; I am Truth and Life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father too. From this moment you know him and have seen him. Philip said, 'Lord, show us the Father and then we shall be satisfied.' Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? 'Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father, so how can you say, "Show us the Father"? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? What I say to you I do not speak of my own accord: it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his works. You must believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe it on the evidence of these works. I am.
Prayer
Many ways beckon, Jesus. They promise to make us real, alive and significant, at least in our own eyes. There is the way of knowledge in which we wrap ourselves in words and concepts imagining we can tame reality to our categories.
There is the way of accomplishment in which we consider ourselves more worthy than others, admiring (as we do) the distance between us and those who have and thus are less.
There is the way of experience in which we pretend to be more real by what we have seen, done and absorbed into memory. There are even ways of claiming our pain to separate and hold ourselves above others, as if pain and finitude were not great levelers of all humanity.
There are not enough words to name all the ways we quest for that elusive life where we finally we become real and the anxious whispers of our emptiness are silenced.
Then there is your way, Jesus. You dwell as one with the Loving Mystery for whom we have no good name. You live in utter dependence on a love human flesh cannot command, partaking and sharing a wealth beyond all human endeavor.
You live knowing that all that belongs to this Loving Mystery is yours, and to this One you belong. In this fullness, you act and speak and give what is yours. And you tell me that you are the way, bidding me to trust, to believe and to live in the fullness you share.
May I dwell in your way, my Brother. Only then will my heart become so generous that I will finally be real, beyond this shadow.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Today’s text
John 14:1-3
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father's house there are many places to live in; otherwise I would have told you. I am going now to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you to myself, so that you may be with me where I am.
Prayer
I am in the basement again, Jesus. Sitting here, fingers poised for any the least word you might give me. Are you here?
You want me to be with you where you are. And I am richly consoled by this thought. The warmth of a love beyond my own races through me, whispering reassurance that my faith is not in vain. It tells me that I am not alone and never will be.
I am here with you. And always will be.
Your promise is for now and ever. You come again and again to take us to yourself, the place of our great belonging. And you come even now to me. Thank you. My early morning heart requires your nearness. I am not myself apart from you.
But I ask: Come also to those whose faces trouble my own. They lose themselves as disease strips ability and memory away, leaving but the husk of the fullness that once was theirs … and ours.
I don’t know how you might come to them this day, taking them into the heart of your nearness. We who love them would be consoled to see and know how such blessing happens, especially for those who have forgotten how to hope and those who can no longer name their beloved.
But most often we neither see nor know. So with tears of wild hope we trust your promise that they, too, shall be with you where you are. This day and ever.
And we know that this place is grace beyond all human measure.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 14:1-3
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father's house there are many places to live in; otherwise I would have told you. I am going now to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you to myself, so that you may be with me where I am.
Prayer
I am in the basement again, Jesus. Sitting here, fingers poised for any the least word you might give me. Are you here?
You want me to be with you where you are. And I am richly consoled by this thought. The warmth of a love beyond my own races through me, whispering reassurance that my faith is not in vain. It tells me that I am not alone and never will be.
I am here with you. And always will be.
Your promise is for now and ever. You come again and again to take us to yourself, the place of our great belonging. And you come even now to me. Thank you. My early morning heart requires your nearness. I am not myself apart from you.
But I ask: Come also to those whose faces trouble my own. They lose themselves as disease strips ability and memory away, leaving but the husk of the fullness that once was theirs … and ours.
I don’t know how you might come to them this day, taking them into the heart of your nearness. We who love them would be consoled to see and know how such blessing happens, especially for those who have forgotten how to hope and those who can no longer name their beloved.
But most often we neither see nor know. So with tears of wild hope we trust your promise that they, too, shall be with you where you are. This day and ever.
And we know that this place is grace beyond all human measure.
Pr. David L. Miller
Monday, April 14, 2008
Monday, April 14, 2008
Today’s text
John 14:1-3
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father's house there are many places to live in; otherwise I would have told you. I am going now to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you to myself, so that you may be with me where I am.
Prayer
The morning comes. Foggy consciousness clears as the shower stings the body to life. Too soon the day’s demands crowd the mind, making it an inhospitable place even for its own resident, me.
You speak of a dwelling place, Jesus, which you prepare for us that we may be with you. You seem to point to a time well ahead and a realm more exalted than the mundane round of daily duty.
But my morning need moves me to hear you afresh. In the house of the All Loving One there are many rooms where we may live. And I would live in one here and now.
I want, no, I need my soul to be a hospitable dwelling where the mind can rest at peace even as it grapples to order the day as see to life’s labors. I need this soul to be a place of welcome for me and for all I encounter in the coming hours.
So I ask: Can you make of me a fit dwelling place for human habitation? Will you clear out the anxious rush, the fears and grudges, the insecurities and prejudices that I may dwell even now in the house of the All Loving?
For I would dwell with you. Only so do am I a place where I and others may truly live.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 14:1-3
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father's house there are many places to live in; otherwise I would have told you. I am going now to prepare a place for you, and after I have gone and prepared you a place, I shall return to take you to myself, so that you may be with me where I am.
Prayer
The morning comes. Foggy consciousness clears as the shower stings the body to life. Too soon the day’s demands crowd the mind, making it an inhospitable place even for its own resident, me.
You speak of a dwelling place, Jesus, which you prepare for us that we may be with you. You seem to point to a time well ahead and a realm more exalted than the mundane round of daily duty.
But my morning need moves me to hear you afresh. In the house of the All Loving One there are many rooms where we may live. And I would live in one here and now.
I want, no, I need my soul to be a hospitable dwelling where the mind can rest at peace even as it grapples to order the day as see to life’s labors. I need this soul to be a place of welcome for me and for all I encounter in the coming hours.
So I ask: Can you make of me a fit dwelling place for human habitation? Will you clear out the anxious rush, the fears and grudges, the insecurities and prejudices that I may dwell even now in the house of the All Loving?
For I would dwell with you. Only so do am I a place where I and others may truly live.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, April 11, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
Today’s text
John 10:7-10
Jesus spoke to them again: In all truth I tell you, I am the gate of the sheepfold. All who have come before me are thieves and bandits, but the sheep took no notice of them. I am the gate. Anyone who enters through me will be safe: such a one will go in and out and will find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.
Prayer
I rise again, my Friend. I have rested secure in your heart. Thank you.
Yesterday brought more joy than expected. Far more. Today will bring tears of remembrance and sober awareness of our human state. Again we will find that the power of our love (so mighty) cannot prevent tragedy and the passing of golden days we wanted never to end.
I pass through you into this day. I acknowledge your nearness as I walk through the gate of early morning into a world less calm and embracing than this quiet cell where I raise my heart to you.
I wish I could say I passed into every day this way. I don’t. But today I do, hearing you say that, no matter what befalls, I walk into fields of promise where I will find nurture. Pasture, you call it.
And as you do a thousand images of the rolling hills of Northwest Illinois come into view. And I am there on the land that made me much of what I am. Thank you for this too.
But it is not the land for which I most thank you or the gifts it continues to give me. I most thank you for your abiding. I thank you that I may pass into every new day through you, hearing your voice telling me that it is for abundance you come.
And it is the abundance of your divine heart that I will find on all the fields of my life, as I enter each day through you.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 10:7-10
Jesus spoke to them again: In all truth I tell you, I am the gate of the sheepfold. All who have come before me are thieves and bandits, but the sheep took no notice of them. I am the gate. Anyone who enters through me will be safe: such a one will go in and out and will find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full.
Prayer
I rise again, my Friend. I have rested secure in your heart. Thank you.
Yesterday brought more joy than expected. Far more. Today will bring tears of remembrance and sober awareness of our human state. Again we will find that the power of our love (so mighty) cannot prevent tragedy and the passing of golden days we wanted never to end.
I pass through you into this day. I acknowledge your nearness as I walk through the gate of early morning into a world less calm and embracing than this quiet cell where I raise my heart to you.
I wish I could say I passed into every day this way. I don’t. But today I do, hearing you say that, no matter what befalls, I walk into fields of promise where I will find nurture. Pasture, you call it.
And as you do a thousand images of the rolling hills of Northwest Illinois come into view. And I am there on the land that made me much of what I am. Thank you for this too.
But it is not the land for which I most thank you or the gifts it continues to give me. I most thank you for your abiding. I thank you that I may pass into every new day through you, hearing your voice telling me that it is for abundance you come.
And it is the abundance of your divine heart that I will find on all the fields of my life, as I enter each day through you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Today’s text
John 10:1-5
[Jesus said] 'In all truth I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a bandit. He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out all those that are his, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.'
Prayer
I am moved, dear Friend, by this most intimate familiarity. You call us by name, one by one. You know us. You want us. You desire our presence, our nearness, our following.
And we, blessed to hear you, draw near because we know the sound of your voice. We know you. We want to be with you, for here we are safe. Regardless what befalls us, we are safely enrapt in a love eternal and true.
Jesus, the timbre of your words creates a gracious circle of divine love. And we dwell at the center of that circle, knowing: No one who dwells within that gentle space shall ever be in death’s clutches. Not now. Not ever. You promised.
I know what it is to hear a voice I love, a voice that loves me. My whole being settles into a holy space where I know what you intend every human soul to know. The heart finds its home.
So today I see myself and my beloved at the center of that holy circle, and I listen to your voice calling our names. One by one. And I know: we are safe in a love we shall never fathom.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 10:1-5
[Jesus said] 'In all truth I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a bandit. He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out all those that are his, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.'
Prayer
I am moved, dear Friend, by this most intimate familiarity. You call us by name, one by one. You know us. You want us. You desire our presence, our nearness, our following.
And we, blessed to hear you, draw near because we know the sound of your voice. We know you. We want to be with you, for here we are safe. Regardless what befalls us, we are safely enrapt in a love eternal and true.
Jesus, the timbre of your words creates a gracious circle of divine love. And we dwell at the center of that circle, knowing: No one who dwells within that gentle space shall ever be in death’s clutches. Not now. Not ever. You promised.
I know what it is to hear a voice I love, a voice that loves me. My whole being settles into a holy space where I know what you intend every human soul to know. The heart finds its home.
So today I see myself and my beloved at the center of that holy circle, and I listen to your voice calling our names. One by one. And I know: we are safe in a love we shall never fathom.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Today’s text
John 10:1-5
[Jesus said] 'In all truth I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a bandit. He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out all those that are his, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.'
Prayer
How is that we know the voice of the shepherd, Jesus, your voice? What gives it away? And why do many not recognize your voice as the resounding of Deep calling to deep?
Perhaps the answer to the riddle is right there. Dwelling far from the deep cry of their own souls, their hearts do not resonate at the sight of you as mine does.
There is no self-congratulation in those words, Jesus, only gratitude. The reality that something in me actually can and does hear you is a mystery well beyond my comprehension.
But this I know: When I hear of you, when I look at you, Deep does in fact call to deep. It is as if there is a space in me that only you fit … or fill, and in knowing you I become whole, no longer needing something I cannot name.
So I long to hear your voice, not voices merely speaking about you. That’s no substitute for you.
I am made for you. You made me for yourself. And I wonder: Are you, too, more whole when I am at home in your heart and not off wandering in far places? I often think so.
Please consider that no disrespect. I have no desire to diminish the confounding wonder you are to me. I am simply aware that you seem to want me as much as I need you.
Pr. David L. Miller
John 10:1-5
[Jesus said] 'In all truth I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a bandit. He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out all those that are his, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.'
Prayer
How is that we know the voice of the shepherd, Jesus, your voice? What gives it away? And why do many not recognize your voice as the resounding of Deep calling to deep?
Perhaps the answer to the riddle is right there. Dwelling far from the deep cry of their own souls, their hearts do not resonate at the sight of you as mine does.
There is no self-congratulation in those words, Jesus, only gratitude. The reality that something in me actually can and does hear you is a mystery well beyond my comprehension.
But this I know: When I hear of you, when I look at you, Deep does in fact call to deep. It is as if there is a space in me that only you fit … or fill, and in knowing you I become whole, no longer needing something I cannot name.
So I long to hear your voice, not voices merely speaking about you. That’s no substitute for you.
I am made for you. You made me for yourself. And I wonder: Are you, too, more whole when I am at home in your heart and not off wandering in far places? I often think so.
Please consider that no disrespect. I have no desire to diminish the confounding wonder you are to me. I am simply aware that you seem to want me as much as I need you.
Pr. David L. Miller
Friday, April 04, 2008
Friday, April 4, 2008
Today’s text
Luke 24:28-35
When they drew near to the village to which they were going, [Jesus] made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them saying, 'It is nearly evening, and the day is almost over.' So he went in to stay with them. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; but he had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, 'Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?' They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven assembled together with their companions, who said to them, 'The Lord has indeed risen and has appeared to Simon.' Then they told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognized him at the breaking of bread.
Prayer
The truth of this moment echoes through the ages, my risen Friend. I have sat at tables with friends, a circle of human souls whose hearts were open to share bread and life. As the wine poured, conversation became communion, glistening with a grace ancient and true.
And I knew this is the life you intend. This is the glory of your life. This makes and keeps us human. This moment is shadowed by eternity. And my heart involuntarily gave thanks for the advance view of what you have in mind, what will be when we all share your life.
I know you at such tables, Jesus. I know you beyond word and concept as truest intuition of eternity. And I need to know nothing more, no sermons or instruction, no long words in longer books or symbols in glass, no mediated understandings. For nothing captures the intimate knowing of such moments, nothing but an open heart.
Hearts set afire by you at tables of holy intimacy and eternal generosity: that is what you make of us at your table of feasting, and every table of such blessed generosity and welcome is yours, a glistening moment of startling revelation, eternity in time.
So may it be for us today and every day. For it is there that you smile and say, “Welcome home.”
Pr. David L. Miller
Luke 24:28-35
When they drew near to the village to which they were going, [Jesus] made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them saying, 'It is nearly evening, and the day is almost over.' So he went in to stay with them. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; but he had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, 'Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?' They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven assembled together with their companions, who said to them, 'The Lord has indeed risen and has appeared to Simon.' Then they told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognized him at the breaking of bread.
Prayer
The truth of this moment echoes through the ages, my risen Friend. I have sat at tables with friends, a circle of human souls whose hearts were open to share bread and life. As the wine poured, conversation became communion, glistening with a grace ancient and true.
And I knew this is the life you intend. This is the glory of your life. This makes and keeps us human. This moment is shadowed by eternity. And my heart involuntarily gave thanks for the advance view of what you have in mind, what will be when we all share your life.
I know you at such tables, Jesus. I know you beyond word and concept as truest intuition of eternity. And I need to know nothing more, no sermons or instruction, no long words in longer books or symbols in glass, no mediated understandings. For nothing captures the intimate knowing of such moments, nothing but an open heart.
Hearts set afire by you at tables of holy intimacy and eternal generosity: that is what you make of us at your table of feasting, and every table of such blessed generosity and welcome is yours, a glistening moment of startling revelation, eternity in time.
So may it be for us today and every day. For it is there that you smile and say, “Welcome home.”
Pr. David L. Miller
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Today’s text
Luke 24:25-32
Then Jesus said to them, 'You foolish men! So slow to believe all that the prophets have said! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer before entering into his glory?' Then, starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, he explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about himself. When they drew near to the village to which they were going, he made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them saying, 'It is nearly evening, and the day is almost over.' So he went in to stay with them. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; but he had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, 'Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?'
Prayer
Stay with us Jesus. We don’t do very well without you.
A wave of anxiety certainly rushed through your Emmaus friends as you were taking your leave, going your way. I can feel it even now all these centuries later, for I share it. It is mine too.
Stay with us. Don’t leave us. Didn’t our hearts burn when we were with this mysterious stranger. And Jesus, you are always a stranger to us. Who can understand you?
But we do understand the joy of your presence, the bliss of your nearness. We understand the heavy weights of soul that fly away, lighter than air, in moments when we know you as close as our breath.
We know the love that enfolds us, evaporates our fears and bears us back into our worlds brimming with courage and gentleness. This is well known. Saints and martyrs and even schlumps like me have known your risenness, and prayed: Stay with us.
It is a prayer you create and honor, containing everything necessary.
So, my dearest Friend, stay. Stay even when we must take leave from each other. We need you more than we can say.
Pr. David L. Miller
Luke 24:25-32
Then Jesus said to them, 'You foolish men! So slow to believe all that the prophets have said! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer before entering into his glory?' Then, starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, he explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about himself. When they drew near to the village to which they were going, he made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them saying, 'It is nearly evening, and the day is almost over.' So he went in to stay with them. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; but he had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, 'Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?'
Prayer
Stay with us Jesus. We don’t do very well without you.
A wave of anxiety certainly rushed through your Emmaus friends as you were taking your leave, going your way. I can feel it even now all these centuries later, for I share it. It is mine too.
Stay with us. Don’t leave us. Didn’t our hearts burn when we were with this mysterious stranger. And Jesus, you are always a stranger to us. Who can understand you?
But we do understand the joy of your presence, the bliss of your nearness. We understand the heavy weights of soul that fly away, lighter than air, in moments when we know you as close as our breath.
We know the love that enfolds us, evaporates our fears and bears us back into our worlds brimming with courage and gentleness. This is well known. Saints and martyrs and even schlumps like me have known your risenness, and prayed: Stay with us.
It is a prayer you create and honor, containing everything necessary.
So, my dearest Friend, stay. Stay even when we must take leave from each other. We need you more than we can say.
Pr. David L. Miller
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Today’s text
Luke 24:18-24
Then one of them, called Cleopas, answered him, 'You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days.' [Jesus] asked, 'What things?' They answered, 'All about Jesus of Nazareth, who showed himself a prophet powerful in action and speech before God and the whole people; and how our chief priests and our leaders handed him over to be sentenced to death, and had him crucified. Our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free. And this is not all: two whole days have now gone by since it all happened; and some women from our group have astounded us: they went to the tomb in the early morning, and when they could not find the body, they came back to tell us they had seen a vision of angels who declared he was alive. Some of our friends went to the tomb and found everything exactly as the women had reported, but of him they saw nothing.'
Prayer
Sad words, Jesus: “Our own hope had been …. Past tense, over and done.
We had hoped that he would set us free. It is hard to know their precise meaning. Did they want you to cast out the Romans occupiers? Establish a new order where everyone would rest secure under their own olive tree and each walk the street in safety and peace?
Two thousand years separate me from them Jesus, but they are barely a breath away. Not even that. They are human as I, and flesh, craving freedom for body and soul. They seek a wide and open space where their hearts might swell and breathe the fullness of this mystery we call life.
It is an old desire, Jesus, as ancient as the everlasting hills. And it finds fulfillment in seeing you. You open that wide space where we might live free as free souls.
Your first friends knew that. They knew the freedom and hope that spring to life in your nearness. It is not surprising that their hearts should leap at a silly tale of angels and resurrection. They had hoped you were the one who brings freedom, even from the final threat all life must face.
You had liberated their hope to fly that high. And mine.
Liberate our hope, dearest Friend. Free our souls to seek you even in the dead places of life where it seems nothing can live.
Open that wide and open space where we might breathe.
Pr. David L. Miller
Luke 24:18-24
Then one of them, called Cleopas, answered him, 'You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days.' [Jesus] asked, 'What things?' They answered, 'All about Jesus of Nazareth, who showed himself a prophet powerful in action and speech before God and the whole people; and how our chief priests and our leaders handed him over to be sentenced to death, and had him crucified. Our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free. And this is not all: two whole days have now gone by since it all happened; and some women from our group have astounded us: they went to the tomb in the early morning, and when they could not find the body, they came back to tell us they had seen a vision of angels who declared he was alive. Some of our friends went to the tomb and found everything exactly as the women had reported, but of him they saw nothing.'
Prayer
Sad words, Jesus: “Our own hope had been …. Past tense, over and done.
We had hoped that he would set us free. It is hard to know their precise meaning. Did they want you to cast out the Romans occupiers? Establish a new order where everyone would rest secure under their own olive tree and each walk the street in safety and peace?
Two thousand years separate me from them Jesus, but they are barely a breath away. Not even that. They are human as I, and flesh, craving freedom for body and soul. They seek a wide and open space where their hearts might swell and breathe the fullness of this mystery we call life.
It is an old desire, Jesus, as ancient as the everlasting hills. And it finds fulfillment in seeing you. You open that wide space where we might live free as free souls.
Your first friends knew that. They knew the freedom and hope that spring to life in your nearness. It is not surprising that their hearts should leap at a silly tale of angels and resurrection. They had hoped you were the one who brings freedom, even from the final threat all life must face.
You had liberated their hope to fly that high. And mine.
Liberate our hope, dearest Friend. Free our souls to seek you even in the dead places of life where it seems nothing can live.
Open that wide and open space where we might breathe.
Pr. David L. Miller
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Today’s text
Luke 24:13-17
Now that very same day, two of them were on their way to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking together about all that had happened. And it happened that as they were talking together and discussing it, Jesus himself came up and walked by their side; but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. He said to them, 'What are all these things that you are discussing as you walk along?' They stopped, their faces downcast.
Prayer
Why, my Lord? Why should they be kept from seeing you, the balm for our aching eyes? It is as if you prevented them from seeing. Or is this simply a way of saying they were still unable to see?
It seems clear, though, that they were kept from recognizing you. But if so, you kept them from seeing a presence that could not endure to reveal a presence that will endure to the end of earthly days.
So you kept them in the dark until they should see light. And there they struggled to understand what they had witnessed, your destruction and the collapse of their hopes.
It seems cruel. And my desire is to hurry to the happy end of the story where their eyes are open. But that would be false.
Truth is the waiting, the struggling, the confusion, the wanting. Yes, always the wanting for light to pierce the darkness of our hearts and minds that we may see and know you.
I don’t like the waiting struggle, my Risen Friend. But that is where I live much of my time. It can become a downcast state. Still, I smile, and often, knowing it is you for whom I wait. That is the one knowledge your Emmaus friends did not yet have.
But I do. So I lift my eyes from earth’s sad dust. Soon enough, the time again will be right to see and recognize you. For your risen presence endures to the end of the age and the closing of my tired eyes.
Pr. David L. Miller
Luke 24:13-17
Now that very same day, two of them were on their way to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking together about all that had happened. And it happened that as they were talking together and discussing it, Jesus himself came up and walked by their side; but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. He said to them, 'What are all these things that you are discussing as you walk along?' They stopped, their faces downcast.
Prayer
Why, my Lord? Why should they be kept from seeing you, the balm for our aching eyes? It is as if you prevented them from seeing. Or is this simply a way of saying they were still unable to see?
It seems clear, though, that they were kept from recognizing you. But if so, you kept them from seeing a presence that could not endure to reveal a presence that will endure to the end of earthly days.
So you kept them in the dark until they should see light. And there they struggled to understand what they had witnessed, your destruction and the collapse of their hopes.
It seems cruel. And my desire is to hurry to the happy end of the story where their eyes are open. But that would be false.
Truth is the waiting, the struggling, the confusion, the wanting. Yes, always the wanting for light to pierce the darkness of our hearts and minds that we may see and know you.
I don’t like the waiting struggle, my Risen Friend. But that is where I live much of my time. It can become a downcast state. Still, I smile, and often, knowing it is you for whom I wait. That is the one knowledge your Emmaus friends did not yet have.
But I do. So I lift my eyes from earth’s sad dust. Soon enough, the time again will be right to see and recognize you. For your risen presence endures to the end of the age and the closing of my tired eyes.
Pr. David L. Miller
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