Messiah’s Mission Prayer
In the August edition of the Grace Note, I began a series offering a few reflections on our Mission Prayer that is a weekly part of our worship together. This month we continue that theme with the second portion of the prayer:
"Gracious God, through belief in Christ and through the presence of the Holy Spirit within us, empower us to... care and support each other and God’s community."
Asking God to empower us to care and support others is no small request. It reminds me of Philippians chapter 2, where the Apostle Paul introduces his readers to one of the earliest Christian hymns, saying, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” Easier said than done! But we don’t do it alone. We trust that the Holy Spirit has indeed been stirred up in us, and that God guides us in the way of care and support that changes lives for the better. This is part of God’s work of liberation from sin, death, and all that oppresses humanity! And it is not for just one group, just one congregation, just one tradition of faith. It is for the whole world.
What does that sort of empowerment look like in our lives this month?
Pastor Paul
