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.
SUNDAY, August 22 13 Pentecost
Jeremiah 1:4-10. But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy.’ ”
“I’m only a...” How many times have we heard these words, or spoken them? It is one of the most familiar, and oldest, excuses on record. God asks Jeremiah to begin his prophetic ministry while he is still a young man, but I suspect it is not just his youth that prompts his response.
Most of us fulfill ordinary tasks with confidence, but when asked to make a public witness of our faith, our almost knee-jerk reaction is to pull back. “Let someone else do it. He or she is more worthy, more skilled, holier.” Yet throughout scripture there are many examples of God choosing the most unlikely candidates. There is no point to telling God about our unworthiness. God created us and knows the number of hairs on our heads. We need only agree to play our part; God does the rest.
Even as I write this, I am pulling out the “only” excuse. “Lord, I am only a sinner. I am only a seeker. What could I possibly have to say that would be of any value?” The answer is clear: we must begin each day not by looking at our deficiencies, but by holding in our hearts God’s call to be an active, faith-filled community. (1998)
PRAY for The Anglican Church of Southern Africa and the Diocese of Cape Town
Ps 71:1-6 and Jeremiah 1:4-10 –OR– Ps 103:1-8 and Isaiah 58:9b-14; Hebrews 12:18-29; Luke 13:10-17
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