Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
NL Daily Devotion for Tuesday, December 5, 2023
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Everyone has a purpose. And while few of us are called to be prophets in the way Jeremiah was, we are, in fact, all called to be prophets in real and vital ways. A prophet is simply someone who speaks God’s words. And what words of God do we all have the opportunity to speak every single day of our lives? We can speak love. We speak love not only literally by choosing kind and compassionate ways to communicate, but in our actions, by choosing kind and compassionate ways to interact with everyone around us.
As we approach Christmas, this can actually get harder, as our stress rises with all the “to dos” and events and frenetic activity. Tempers grow as short as the daylight in the northern hemisphere. (We get only around 7 hours where I live.) In this season of contemplative waiting, let us step back and remember Jeremiah, and all those God called throughout time to speak God’s words of truth, hope, and love. Let us count ourselves among the prophets, and consider how we might speak in this same way.
When, recently, have I had an opportunity to speak love? Did I choose to? Why or why not?
