Daily Worship

In search of what satisfies

Fyfe January 18, 2016 0 0

Isaiah 55: 1-5

Isaiah 55 1-5 (Msg version)

“Hey there! All who are thirsty,
    come to the water!
Are you penniless?
    Come anyway—buy and eat!
Come, buy your drinks, buy wine and milk.
    Buy without money—everything’s free!
Why do you spend your money on junk food,
    your hard-earned cash on cotton candy?
Listen to me, listen well: Eat only the best,
    fill yourself with only the finest.
Pay attention, come close now,
    listen carefully to my life-giving, life-nourishing words.
I’m making a lasting covenant commitment with you,
    the same that I made with David: sure, solid, enduring love.
I set him up as a witness to the nations,
    made him a prince and leader of the nations,
And now I’m doing it to you:
    You’ll summon nations you’ve never heard of,
and nations who’ve never heard of you
    will come running to you
Because of me, your God,
    because The Holy of Israel has honored you.”

We know all too well how the world’s resources for life are always expensive, exploit, grudging and ultimately unsatisfying. The search for what satisfies seems to have ongoing hunger. Isaiah speaks of an alternative story and world in which God’s ways are in contrast if not in opposition to the world/Empire. The invitation is given to choose the free alternative nourishment offered by God. One way then leads to deathliness, the other to life and homecoming.

A meditation: Listen to this song to aid your reflections - ‘Haere Mai' (‘Welcome’ in Maori) by Malcolm Gordon www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRc3O8eC1V8


Pray: 
May God bless us with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that we may live from deep within our hearts.
May God bless us with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of God's creations
So that we may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless us with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war,
So that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless us with just enough foolishness
To believe that we can make a difference in the world,
So that we can do what others claim cannot be done:
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and all our neighbours who are poor.
Amen.   [A Franciscan Benediction]