Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“The Lord bless you from Zion.
May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
May you see your children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel!”
NL Daily Devotion for Friday, January 21, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
There’s a better than good chance that I will never have grandchildren. I don’t know, yet, how I feel about that. I know how much joy my kids and my siblings’ kids have brought to my parents. And I remember well how much my own grandparents delighted in me.
For the ancient Israelites, God’s promise was offspring, family, nation. Children, grandchildren, and descendants were proof of God’s love, an assurance that their names would continue on. For us in modern times, a lot of these ideas still linger. After all, who will remember me if I have no descendants feverishly researching on Ancestry.com?
I take comfort in the fact that I am a member of God’s family, a beloved child and essential part of the Body of Christ. I recognize the myriad ways God has blessed me and my family, and I am sure that whether or not I am remembered a hundred years from now on earth, I will always be fully known and deeply loved by God. And that’ enough for me.
What do I think about genealogy? What does it mean to me to be part of God’s family?