God Pause for Sunday, 7/27/2014

Luther Seminary God Pause

Sunday, 7/27/2014 Hymn: "Be Thou My Vision," ELW 793

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart; naught be all else to me, save that thou art: thou my best thought both by day and by night, waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

Be thou my wisdom, and thou my true word; I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord. Thou my soul's shelter, and thou my high tow'r, raise thou me heav'nward, O Pow'r of my pow'r.

Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise, thou mine inheritance, now and always: thou and thou only, the first in my heart, great God of heaven, my treasure thou art.

Light of my soul, after victory won, may I reach heaven's joys, O heaven's Sun! Heart of my own heart, whatever befall, still be my vision, O Ruler of all.>

I love this plea for God to be our vision and wisdom--to be all that we see and to be at the center of our thoughts. This prayer is especially true for us as we are inundated with visions and thoughts that lead us away from God. We have no better thought than God--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--whether it be morning or night, whether we are awake or asleep. And so the hymn invites our reflections and prayer: There is nothing better than me being with you and you being with me, for you are the protector of my soul. Let me not seek riches and empty praise for you are my true inheritance both now and always. Be first in my heart and may I always treasure you. May I reach your promise of eternal life and your heavenly reward, and no matter what this life brings, you'll still be my vision, O ruler of all. I've learned a lot from the vision and wisdom of this hymn over the years, and it's still one of my favorites.

God, ruler of all things, bless us with your vision and wisdom. Amen.

Sean Forde Port Saint Lucie, Fla. Master of Divinity, 2005

Please forward this e-mail to a friend! http://send.luthersem.edu/public/webform/renderform/default/848eff8bea7092a93dfabe641c758499/ftaf/jcygk51rv7pgytti1o5iqlj3q6x7o/bitubzqtlsgrrxzufqyrminvqislbif?tid=3.NX4.ChNR1A.GzlN.Ajzdrg..A1XWA.b..l.Ayzt.n.U9TJ6Q.U9TJ6Q.3Lr1BA

This God Pause daily devotion is brought to you by alumni/ae of Luther Seminary.

Luther Seminary educates leaders for Christian communities across the country and around the world. It is the largest of the eight seminaries in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).

We invite you to join us online for our daily chapel service.

Luther Seminary Faith Resource Spotlight

You are currently subscribed to these God Pause daily devotions as pbm+saint-marks+3icvrj@squarespace.com

Manage your email preferences: http://send.luthersem.edu/public/webform/renderform/default/848eff8bea7092a93dfabe641c758499/manpref/jcygk51rv7pgytti1o5iqlj3q6x7o/bitubzqtlsgrrxzufqyrminvqislbif?tid=3.NX4.ChNR1A.GzlN.Ajzdrg..A1XWA.b..l.Ayzt.n.U9TJ6Q.U9TJ6Q.3Lr1BA

For best viewing of future e-mails, please add communic@luthersem.edu to your Safe Senders List or Address Book.

If you no longer wish to receive these emails, please click below to Manage Email Preferences and uncheck the God Pause list. http://send.luthersem.edu/public/webform/renderform/default/848eff8bea7092a93dfabe641c758499/manpref/jcygk51rv7pgytti1o5iqlj3q6x7o/bitubzqtlsgrrxzufqyrminvqislbif?tid=3.NX4.ChNR1A.GzlN.Ajzdrg..A1XWA.b..l.Ayzt.n.U9TJ6Q.U9TJ6Q.3Lr1BA

Unsubscribe from all messages, not just God Pause: http://send.luthersem.edu/public/webform/renderform/default/848eff8bea7092a93dfabe641c758499/unsub/jcygk51rv7pgytti1o5iqlj3q6x7o/bitubzqtlsgrrxzufqyrminvqislbif?tid=3.NX4.ChNR1A.GzlN.Ajzdrg..A1XWA.b..l.Ayzt.n.U9TJ6Q.U9TJ6Q.3Lr1BA

This email was sent to pbm+saint-marks+3icvrj@squarespace.com by Luther Seminary 2481 Como Ave. | St. Paul | MN | 55108