Weekly Greeting - May 24, 2024
Dear Bethlehem,
Once a cobbler went to see his rabbi. He said to him, “Tell me what to do about my morning prayer. My customers are poor men who have only one pair of shoes. I pick up their shoes late in the evening and work on them most of the night; at dawn there is still work to be done if the men are to have their shoes ready before they go to work. Now my question is: what should I do about my morning prayer?”
The rabbi asked, “What have you been doing up to now?”
The cobbler said, “Sometimes I rush through the prayer quickly and get back to my work – but I feel bad about it. At other times I let the hour of prayer go by. Then, I feel a sense of loss and every now and then, as I raise my hammer from the shoes, I can almost hear my heart sigh, what an unlucky man I am, that I am not able to make my morning prayer.”
The rabbi, said to the man, “If I were God, I would value that sigh more than the prayer.”
In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul says:
“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.” Romans 8:26 NIV
Sometimes we don’t have the words to say when we pray even when we have time to pray. Monday our country will observe Memorial Day. Our words are inadequate to express how we feel about those who have given their lives in the service of our country; but we will have a special prayer this Sunday, believing that God’s spirit will also intercede with us and for us. Please remember to always pray and to trust God’s Spirit to guide you.
God bless!
Craig
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We will have one service this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. Our text is Isaiah 6:1-8 as we explore the prophet’s vision of God. As you read in preparation for worship this Sunday, ask yourself:
1. Where do I see God most clearly?
2. How do I respond to the encounters I have with the divine?
See you in worship!