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| Image by Jon Dickson |
A GREETING
I will bless you as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands and call on your name.
(Psalm 63:4)
A READING
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!
(Psalm 90:14,16-17)
MUSIC
A MEDITATIVE VERSE
I will both lie down and sleep in peace;
for you alone, Lord, make me lie down in safety.
(Psalm 4:8)
A POEM PRAYER
I dream a world where man
No other man will scorn,
Where love will bless the earth
And peace its paths adorn
I dream a world where all
Will know sweet freedom's way,
Where greed no longer saps the soul
Nor avarice blights our day.
A world I dream where black or white,
Whatever race you be,
Will share the bounties of the earth
And every man is free,
Where wretchedness will hang its head
And joy, like a pearl,
Attends the needs of all mankind-
Of such I dream, my world!
- "I Dream a World", by Langston Hughes
VERSE OF THE DAY
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
(Psalm 90:2)
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MUSIC
Today’s music features two versions of the African American spiritual, “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands”. Just above we hear it as it was sung on live television by singer Marian Anderson in 1953. Anderson had collaborated closely with composer Hamilton Forrest, who was working to revive and establish spirituals as concert songs. Their version expresses the integrity of how they believed the song was originally sung.
The first music selection offers a performance by the Stellenbosch University choir in South Africa in a recording made only a few weeks ago. Whereas the Anderson version is meant to be sung solo, in this version, arranged by Cedric Dent and sung in both English and Zulu, we hear the full robust sound of an a capella chorus.
In moving from 1953 to 2022, and from America to South Africa we have the chance to hear how music exemplifies the spirit of resilience and endurance in the face of oppression and hardship in other parts of the world. God holds the whole world and also its suffering. Sometimes we sing as a way of searching for peace and a place to belong. The song affirms that amidst systemic injustice and oppression, God is always holding us.
In today’s reading the psalmist focuses on the work we all do to build the realm of God. "Let your work be manifest to your servants, and your glorious power to their children." When Mary rests her hands on her growing belly, she has the whole world under her palms. But once Jesus has come into the world, building the realm of God will rely on the work of our own hands. What does the coming of Jesus mean to each of us in the way we dream of making change? What will be the work of our own hands after he is born?
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| Image by Alex Berger |
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LC† A Joyful Noise is a project of Lutherans Connect, supported by the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Centre for Spirituality and Media at Martin Luther University College. To receive the devotions by email, write to lutheransconnect@gmail.com. The devotional pages are written and curated by Deacon Sherry Coman, with support and input from Pastor Steve Hoffard, Catherine Evenden and Henriette Thompson. Join us on Facebook, and on Twitter. Lutherans Connect invites you to make a donation to the Ministry by going to this link on the website of the ELCIC Eastern Synod and selecting "Lutherans Connect Devotionals" under "Fund". Devotions are always freely offered, however your donations help to support extended offerings throughout the year. Thank you and peace be with you!
