Frederick Buechner - Faith That Matters: 365 Devotions from Classic Christian Leaders

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FAITH THAT MATTERS . Copyright 2018 by HarperOne. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address HarperCollins Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007.

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ePub Edition April 2018: ISBN 978-031-009019-9

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JANUARY 1
THE SPIRITUAL WORK OF GRATITUDE

Henri J. M. Nouwen

He said:
Naked I came from my mothers womb, And naked shall I return there. The L ORD gave, and the L ORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the L ORD .

J OB 1:21 NKJV

T o be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our livesthe good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejectionsthat requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say Thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for.

Lets not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.

Consider your moments of joy and sorrow, your successes as well as failures, the times God gave, and the times he took away. Can you join Job in proclaiming, Blessed be the name of the L ORD ?

Lord, cultivate within me a spirit of gratitude for all youve given and all youve taken away. Blessed be your name, Lord. Amen.

JANUARY 2
IN THE MORNING, TRUST GOD

Eugene Peterson

O L ORD , in the morning thou dost hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for thee, and watch.

P SALM 5:3 RSV

T he work of God begins while we are asleep and without our help. He continues to work through the day in our worship and obedience. A sacrifice is the material means of assembling a life before God in order to let God work with it. Sacrifice isnt something we do for God but simply setting out the stuff of life for him to do something with. On the altar the sacrificial offering is changed into what is pleasing and acceptable to God. In the act of offering we give up ownership and control, and watch to see what God will do with it. With a deep awareness that the God who speaks life into us also listens when we speak, we put into words the difficulties and delights that we foresee in the hours ahead. We assemble fears and hopes, apprehensions and anticipations, and place them on the altar as an offering.

A pivotal word in the morning is the word watch. We watch to see what God will do with the array of concerns we set before him. Morning prayer places us before the watchful God, readying us to enter the day watchful for dangers to recede, for the dangerous day to fill with Gods angels.

Lord, this early hour I bring to you all of my apprehensionstrusting you, watching you. Amen.

JANUARY 3
MADE FOR EACH OTHER

N. T. Wright

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

P ROVERBS 27:17

W e are made for each other. Yet making relationships work, let alone making them flourish, is often remarkably difficult. We all know that justice matters, yet it slips through our fingers. We mostly know that there is such a thing as spirituality, and that its important, yet its hard to refute the charge that its all wishful thinking. In the same way, we all know that we belong in communities, that we were made to be social creatures. Yet there are many times when we are tempted to slam the door and stomp off into the night by ourselves, simultaneously making the statement that we dont belong anymore and that we want someone to take pity on us, to come to the rescue and comfort us. We all know we belong in relationships, but we cant quite work out how to get them right. The voice we hear echoing in our heads and our hearts keeps reminding us of both parts of this paradox, and its worth pondering why.

We were made for each other is a profound statement of reality, echoed in the proverbfor its in community that we are shaped and find our sharpened selves. Its also a signpost of a deeper reality, telling us there is a road ahead that leads to goodness.

Lord, thank you for making me for community; may I become more like you through others help. Amen.

JANUARY 4
DO YOU KNOW THAT GOD LOVES YOU?