Thoughts for the Day

Give ear to my prayer, O God;
do not hide yourself from my supplication.
Attend to me, and answer me;
I am troubled in my complaint....

My heart is in anguish within me,
the terrors of death have fallen upon me.
Fear and trembling come upon me,
and horror overwhelms me.
And I say, 'O that I had wings like a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest;
truly, I would flee far away;
I would lodge in the wilderness,'....

Cast your burden on the Lord,
and he will sustain you;
he will never permit
the righteous to be moved.

(New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

We all have regrets don't we? One of mine is singing the solo part of Mendelssohn's 'O for the wings of a dove' in Ford Open Prison! The irony of the words escaped me - well I was only 15 years old at the time - and the prisoners certainly loved the music.

These wonderful words come from Psalm 55, and they reflect that all of us have felt like running or flying away at some time in our life. Many of us have certainly experienced this in the last few months, and may indeed still wish we could just go somewhere completely safe.

When we feel this scared, the psalmist says we need to lay all our burdens on the Lord!

Friday 9th October, follow up thoughts

Lord God,
when we feel worried,
nervous or even scared
help us to remember
to turn to You first, not last;
and to continue praying each day
for others who need help,
whether known to us or not,
Amen.