Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“The vine withers,
the fig tree droops.
Pomegranate, palm, and apple—
all the trees of the field are dried up;
surely, joy withers away
among the people.”
NL Daily Devotion for Tuesday, December 10, 2024
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
I can’t even imagine what it is to live with the devastation of war. To have what is familiar, what I have loved, utterly destroyed. To have my livelihood rendered null and void. I know I am ridiculously privileged in this. Wars continue to rage worldwide. Some have been going on for decades. When Russia invaded Ukraine, there was outrage for weeks and even months. It’s been more than two years. I only occasionally hear about it. The latest iteration of the conflict in the Middle East, which has killed more than a thousand Israelis and tens of thousands of Palestinians (mostly civilians in both cases), was kicked off more than a year ago. Here, too, coverage has not kept pace with the death toll.
These are human beings. Beloved children of God. They are innocent victims of the lust for wealth and power of a small group of people. Those who have managed to flee must certainly lament, as the prophet Joel, over the destroyed place left behind.
Take a moment today to pray for the people in this situation. Then take a moment to find out how you can, even in the smallest way, contribute to decreasing violence in our world.
What is the worst loss I have ever experienced? Who helped me through it?
