Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return there until they have watered the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. ”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, December 12, 2021
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: God’s words go into the world and return full as they are spoken to accomplish God’s purpose.
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” So, goes the adage. Not true. There is no doubt words can be incredibly hurtful.
Some words have the power to transform the world for the worse. “I believe today that my conduct is in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator.” ~Adolf Hitler.
Some words have the power to transform the world for the better. “I have a dream…” ~Martin Luther King, Jr. “Four score, and seven years ago…” ~Abraham Lincoln. “Be the change you want to see in the world…” ~Ghandi.
God’s words have the power to transform the world eternally. God promises milk and wine without price—a restoration of the people of Israel from exile. The promises held in God’s words were hope for a broken and hopeless people. God acknowledges that people may not have the capacity to understand God’s ways, but that God’s ways are good and in them there is life.
Most importantly, God’s words are never empty. God’s words go out into the world, where they are nourished and grow; they return to God full, having accomplished God’s purposes.
We are charged with a tremendous responsibility concerning God’s words. We cannot use God’s words or God’s Word to beat people down, to justify war, to prove a position, or to keep people in poverty. God’s words and God’s Word must be spoken with tenderness and love, with power and justice, with thought and meaning. We can use God’s words to change the world for the better. For acceptance, for justice, for tolerance, for communicating, for peace, for the uplifting of humanity, for love.
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