Forward Movement is an official, non-profit agency of the Episcopal Church whose mission is to create compelling content for Christian living. Since 1935 we have published the quarterly devotional Forward Day by Day, as well as pamphlets, booklets, and books that encourage and nourish people in their lives of prayer and faith.
MONDAY, August 16 Saint Mary the Virgin (tr.)
Psalm 34. Taste and see that the Lord is good.
On a retreat, we were given a small pocket notebook titled “Senses Census.” The retreat leader then sent us out on a walk to collect and record what we saw, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted.
As I crunched over the gravel walkway leading to the trail, I heard a meadowlark singing and felt the wind against my cheek. The taste of the lunch dessert, a fresh lemon meringue pie, lingered in my mouth. Blooming cactus complemented the smell of sage, as did the sound of thunder with the darkening skies overhead. Workers chattered and laughed, listening to radio music as they put stucco on a house. An American flag fluttered on a pole. I visually explored the undulating red rock formations of the Colorado National Monument that stretched across the horizon, and stood for a long while watching the light changing across its surfaces. In the distance, I heard a bell ringing, indicating it was time to come back in and share our census with the other retreatants.
The psalmist suggests that we can know God through our senses—and not only that we can know God, but we can know that God is good. (2006)
PRAY for the Diocese of Fond du Lac (Province V, USA)
Ps 34 or 34:1-9; Isaiah 61:10-11; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 1:46-55
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