Day 57 – Are you alone today? Good!

Prayer for the week

Start you day with this prayer

Symbol: Dove

 

Prayer

Spirit of God, during Pentecost we celebrate the glorious blessing of your presence in the world: an event we call the birth of the church. By this life-altering blessing You made it possible for everyone who believes to acknowledge and proclaim that Jesus is Lord.

We confess that we often do not see or acknowledge the work of your Holy Spirit in our lives, and that we sometimes even resist it on purpose. We want to follow our own heads, rather than trusting your guidance. We make our own plans, rather than following your plans. We prefer the familiarity of our comfort, rather than diving into the adventure of your encouragement.

Show us, graceful God, where we can listen better, see more clearly and be much more aware – so that we may live in the rhythm of the breathing of your Spirit. Blow us to where You want us, Lord, so that we will be faithful to our calling as witnesses: to proclaim the Good News everywhere we go, so that in the end every tongue will acknowledge that You are the King of Creation.

Amen.

 

Reflection

Read this reflection on the text for the day. 

I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold – Psalm 18:1-2.

Who is next to you and around you? Many influential missionary organisations, churches and Christian movements? Impressive business people and politicians who serve God and run their businesses according to the principles of God’s kingdom? A safe society that lives in line with God’s commandments?

Probably not! Most likely you are alone. Good!

For the Christian faith will not be built by huge numbers of people, loud voices or influential businesses. It will be individuals who make the biggest difference in this world. And you are one of them. You are part of the team of One. And, by the way, this One is the Lord, not you. How many believers you see around you don’t really count. The only question is: Is Jesus the One closest to you?

But, you may ask, why can people like you and I then not succeed in changing the world in the Name of Jesus? Maybe because we waste time by waiting on more people to join us. In vain we place our hope on earthly princes. Do not do this! God is our only source of strength. Wait on Him today, and only Him. He will show up, in time, with a handful of heavenly manna, enough for today. And with living water, enough so that you will have left to give to others around you.

No, you are not too young or too old, to uneducated or too learned, too ill or too busy, too weak or without enough faith to be the right person at the right time at the right place. You are a one-man or one-woman army in the Name of the Lord.

Call today on the support you really need. Ask God to be present in your day so that He may change the world. No, believe that He is already present in your life. He has already delivered you. Ask Him to take the veil from your eyes so that you will see Him through your spiritual eyes. That is all. Then the world will start changing, right there next to you, one day at a time.

My Rock and my Fortress, thank you that I can always run to You. Help me to come to You only for strength and make me aware of your presence every day, even though I may feel alone. That will be enough for me. Amen.

Liturgy for life

A new habit to end your day


Here is a suggestion for a new habit to make part of your life and to end each day in this way:

– Think back on the blessings of God you experienced through the day. How did the Lord bless you with heavenly manna? What daily bread was on your menu? Were you blessed with even more than bread? How did the Lord provide in your needs and the needs of your loved ones? When were you aware of the hand of the Lord in your life? How did God renew you? What impact did your words and deeds have on others? How were their lives changed because God placed you near them today?

– Thank the Lord for today and for his manna. Praise Him for today, for every abundance and for every need. Be rich at God’s feet tonight, even though you are very poor. Be poor at God’s feet tonight, even though you are rich. Be humble but abundant with your gratefulness. Sing a song of praise about what happened to you,, with you, around you and with others today that reflected God’s honour.

– Say you are sorry about every opportunity that slipped through your fingers, every word you did not say that could have glorified God, every chance you missed to serve and love others. Say you are sorry for every time you were selfish and claimed the glory for yourself. Accept God’s forgiveness and put all these things behind you. Do not go to sleep with guilty feelings or negative emotions in your mind. 

– Ask the Lord for his heavenly manna for the night ahead. Pray the love and care of the Lord over yourself, your loved ones and the people around you and those far away from you.  

May you sleep peacefully tonight!

Children’s activity

Play with your children.

Wow! 21 Days of isolation. 21 Days in which we’re only allowed to be in our homes (or gardens) and can only go out for the most essential things like food and medicine. It can be a little rough! All the things we usually do during the day, like school, sport, church … are not happening anymore. It can really confuse you and maybe even bore you a little. These daily readings will help you to spend some time with Jesus every day in a creative and fun way. You can do these readings and activities by yourself, with your siblings, or with your entire family. Ask one of the grownups to post your activity on Facebook so that others can enjoy it with you. Tag it with #solitudecalendar #churchtogether

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God’s children should go out and tell the world how God is and how God loves us. Sometimes this is very difficult. We are scared and unsure or maybe we think we are too young or not good enough to be witnesses for Jesus. Fortunately we do not have to feel like this for we have a secret weapon: God is with us. God protects us. God helps us. God gives us the courage to do things that are a challenge to us.

– In today’s Bible verse God is called a rock. Why do you think God is described as a rock?

– Think of other names or images you can use to describe God.

Activity


Build yourself a fortress or shelter from blankets and sheets today. Go hide in your shelter and read your favourite Bible story.

Picture this

Look at this week’s illustration. 

Talk to the people in your home or with your friends on WhatsApp about the illustration. 

– What stands out to you? 

– Take note of the things you see, but also of the things that aren’t present in the illustration.

– What would you like to add?

– How does this illustration connect with today’s Scripture, and how not?

Create your own interpretation of the illustration through any medium: dance, photography, videography, music, poetry, drawing, painting or short stories. 

Record it and share it with us on social media with the hashtag #countdowndoodles