Lent 2009: Day 16

Lenten Journey through the Spiritual Alphabet
Psalm 119, Sustainable Love

Heth (part 2)
At midnight I rise to praise you
because your edicts are just.
I am the friend of all who fear you,
of all who keep your precepts.
The earth, LORD, is filled with your love;
teach me your laws.
*****
I woke up in the middle of the night last night
and remembered this stanza of my Psalm 119.
It reminded me to count my blessings, and I did.

That reminded me how important it is to Love each other.
To ENCOURAGE each other.

All of our leaders need to learn this.

One encouraging word to a lowly person who is down,
from the mouth of a respected person in a leadership/ shepherding position,
can spark a flicker that becomes a flame.

Personal encouragement, a spoken word, particularly from a leader, can be healing and transforming.
The body of Christ,
i.e.,
the leader working with the Christ in him.

In that regard, to encourage, to allow Christ to work through you, requires vulnerability and that is not easy for some.

Dear President Obama:
Please encourage us to keep the hope alive!
We know times are very bad, we know it is not your fault.
Yet remember where and who we are!

We are resourceful, we are creative,
We are courageous and responsible,
We pull-up our boot straps and get the job done!
We do what it takes – we work together!
We are giving loving caring people - rich and poor alike.
We help each other, we share what we have and
We don’t need anyone or any institution to tell us to do it…
We do it because we are good people.

Not only can we get through this, we will!

The earth, LORD, is filled with your love;
teach us your laws. (Hint: Love God, Love Neighbor)