October 21, Today’s thought -Consecration

10-19,20-09 072October 20, 2009, on a cruise leaving New York Harbor, pleasant memories.

Good Morning

Matthew 26:36-41, 44-54

36 Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.

37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.

38 Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.

39 And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

40 And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?

41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

. . . . . . .

45 Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

46 Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.

47 And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people.

48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast.

49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, master; and kissed him.

50 And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus and took him.

51 And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear.

52 Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.

53 Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?

54 But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?

Peter is consecrated to Jesus.
We know that because he is ready to defend Jesus from the crowd.
But Peter is not consecrated to God’s plan.
We know that because is not ready for Jesus to follow God’s will.

Verse 41: Watch and Pray, that you enter not into temptation.
The temptation to think my way is better that God’s way,
especially when I don’t understand the ‘whys’.

Watch and Pray . . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on October 21, 2013 at 5:54 am  Comments (1)  
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July 4, Today’s thought – “I Lift My Lamp”

10-19,20-09 075‘The Statue of Liberty’ in New York harbor
photographed by Emily Crain, October 21, 2009

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
~~Emma Lazarus (July 22, 1849-November 19, 1887)

On this day in 1886, a year before her death at 38, Emma Lazarus recited here sonnet, “The New Colossus,” at the dedication of the Statue of Liberty, a gift from the French people to commemorate the centennial of American independence. Lazarus, herself a Sephardic Jew, was prominent in her role as head of an organization providing relief for Jewish immigrants. The closing lines of the poem, cared at the base of the statue, express her position that America continue to be “Mother of Exiles.”
At 305 feet from base to torch, the Statue of Liberty is the largest statue ever made.

Isaiah 42:5-7
Thus saith God the LORD,
he that created the heavens, and stretched them out;
he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it;
he that giveth breath unto the people upon it,
and spirit to them that walk therein:
I the LORD have called thee in righteousness,
and will hold thine hand,
and will keep thee,
and give thee for a covenant of the people,
for a light of the Gentiles;
To open the blind eyes,
to bring out the prisoners from the prison,
and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.

Matthew 4:16-17
The people which sat in darkness saw great light;
and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death
light is sprung up.
From that time Jesus began to preach,
and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Walk in that Light. . . Today
With my prayers, desiring yours, Leslie

Published in: on July 4, 2013 at 10:31 am  Leave a Comment  
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