September 25, 2016
Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost
Thought for the Week: Psalm 146
Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
I was born with a song in my heart. This probably has a lot to do with the family I come from – a family of musicians and artists. Music was always playing in the background, if not being created and performed by a friend or family member in my midst. We are that family that hums or whistles without realizing it. Even today, I often catch myself mid-song without even knowing when it began.
While some of you may not relate to my lifelong connection to music, I am sure that if you take a moment to consider your earliest memories you will find a melody. What is your earliest memory? This question takes me back to my mother’s arms, being rocked to sleep with a sigh and a song. For all that we absorb and learn as children, our first lessons often come to us in song. Whether it is “The ABC’s,” “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” or “Jesus Loves Me,” these songs and their lyrics have a hold on our memories that last a life time.
God’s love is a love beyond measure. It transforms us, renews us, and sustains us like nothing else. This love of God is worthy of our praise! As caretakers of children, we have the opportunity to share songs of God’s love that will last a life time. Celebrate and share this love today and every day.
Questions for the Week:
What is the first song you can remember learning? What do you remember most about it (the melody, a phrase, what was happening when you learned it)?
What are some specific, explicate ways you can celebrate and share the love of God with your students, especially this week?
What do you need of God’s love most this week – transformation, renewal, or sustenance? Reflect and/or discuss why and what this (transformation, renewal, sustenance) would mean for you.
Personal Prayer for the Week:
God, thank you for the gift of your love – your love that came to life and lived among us in Jesus. Help us to live like Jesus, so we too can show and share your love with every breath. Amen.
This devotion was written for the ELEA’s Devotional Guide for the 2016-2017 school year. The ELEA is an association of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Schools and Learning Centers.