“Make Me an Instrument”
Good Morning Friends,
The Prayer of St. Francis is well known.
“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O, Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.”
Today we explore the request St. Francis has of God to “Make Me an Instrument.”
Scripture: The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.
Isaiah 61:1-3 (NIV)
Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
Romans 12:15 (NRSV)
as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts,
Ephesians 5:19 (NRSV)
Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.
Proverbs 18:21 (NRSV)
Message: Are you an instrument of hope and peace for others? If you are focused on naming it and claiming it, maybe you are just tooting your own horn. Maybe if you are always trying to fix people all you are really doing is a temporary retuning of their strings. Maybe if you are so exuberant in praising God you miss your place in the music. Maybe we just need to be there in the choir. Maybe we just need to let God abide in us. Maybe we need to let go and realize that the instrument of God’s provision, purpose and transformation is experienced through our best self. Here we might just realize that the most valuable instrument of worship is one that opens with sensitivity the fibers of the heart to God’s tuning. Friends, here we might just realize that the most powerful instrument of God is not war but the Spirit of ourselves played in the song of peace that God breathes into us and through us as our very lives are sanctified. It is that music that defeats evil. Friends, Jesus is the instrument that frees us from the bondage of resentment and revenge. Jesus is the obedient instrument of Love that prepares in us a body of heavenly harmony incarnate and give us words that vibrate with the resonance of God. Friends, the tongue is like a musical instrument which can play a tune of gossip, lying, slander, flattery, and angry speech… playing every note very loud, missing the mark of timing and just playing the wrong note. Or it can blend its notes and words with others in tune and on time, making room for silence, and in harmony. Let God play you to His glory for our Lord knows the music of heaven.
Pray we learn to wait in hope for God’s music. Pray our heartstrings vibrate with the tune of trust. Pray we read the rests as well as the notes. Pray we play a new song on the instrument of entrepreneurship. Pray our friendships open our pipes and eyes to the beauty of others. Pray each morning we are retuned in the Word made flesh. Pray we encourage each other to be part of the music that God is directing and composing each day. Pray we are used as God’s instrument in all our conversations. Pray we share grace as an instrument of the will of the Master Musician.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 