Devotion: Lent Day 2
Posted: 84 days ago
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.
Joel 2:13
Confession
Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep, we have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts, we have offended against thy holy laws, we have left undone those things which we ought to have done and we have done those things which we ought not to have done. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us, spare thou those who confess their faults, restore thou those who are penitent, according to thy promises declared unto mankind in Christ Jesus our Lord; and grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake, that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous and sober life, to the glory of thy holy Name. Amen.
Psalm 119:5-8
- Oh that my ways may be steadfast
in keeping your statutes! - Then I shall not be put to shame,
having my eyes fixed on all your commandments. - I will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn your righteous rules. - I will keep your statutes;
do not utterly forsake me!
Notes on Psalm 119:5-8
The psalmist expresses a heartfelt desire that he truly keep God’s law faithfully (1:5). Deep down, in his heart and soul, this is what he truly wants to do. Yet, he knows his actions fall short of the perfect obedience his heart longs for. If he did keep God’s law, then he would not feel the guilt and shame he feels when he looks upon the Law he regularly breaks (1:6). Even though he breaks God’s law, that does not change the fact that in his heart, he sincerely wants to obey. This is why he can say that he will give God glory with an “upright heart” as he learns more of what God desires from him (1:7). This section ends not just with a wish or explanation, but with his commitment to make the outward match the inward, to align his actions with the desire of his heart. He pledges to truly follow the ways of the Lord, but he also pleads that God not abandon him as he struggles to make his life conform to the calling of God. (1:8)
Personal Reflection on Psalm 119:5-8
Think about the ways that your desires to follow God match up or don’t match up with your actions. If during Lent you were to make the kind of commitment to follow God that the psalmist made, what are some things you could do to help live out that promise?
Prayer
Thanksgiving, Intercession and the Lord’s Prayer
Closing Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: help us come before you in honesty, build in us a deeper desire to follow your ways and give us the grace to carry it out, that we may please and honor you all the days of our lives; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen