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New every morning is your love, great God of light, and all day long you are working for good in the world. Stir up in us desire to serve you, to live peacefully with our neighbors and all your creation, and to devote each day to your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

"A Liturgy for Morning Prayer," Upper Room Worshipbook

Used by permission from the Book of Common Worship, © 2018 Westminster John Knox Press. All rights reserved. This prayer appears in “A Liturgy for Morning Prayer” in Upper Room Worshipbook.

Today’s Reflection

RECONCILIATION IS NOT a hasty process, proclaiming peace where there is no peace, ignoring injustice and human suffering. Reconciliation is intimately connected with justice, with right relations. As Christians, we must restore the work of reconciliation from the periphery to the center of the life and witness of the church where it belongs. My dream is that every church becomes a neighborhood reconciliation center.

– Thomas Porter
The Spirit and Art of Conflict Transformation

From pages 28-29 of The Spirit and Art of Conflict Transformation: Creating a Culture of JustPeace by Thomas Porter. Copyright © 2010 by Thomas W. Porter Jr. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Are your engaged in reconciliation ministry? If so, describe it. Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture

Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
Psalm 125:1, NRSV

This Week: pray for the leaders of nations. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section.

Did You Know?

In need of prayer? The Upper Room Living Prayer Center is a 7-day-a-week intercessory prayer ministry staffed by trained volunteers. Call 1-800-251-2468 or visit The Living Prayer Center website.

This week we remember: Mother Teresa of Calcutta (September 5).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Sponsored by Upper Room Ministries ®. Copyright © 2018 | PO Box 340004 | Nashville, TN 37203-0004 | USA

10 Comments

  • Jill Posted September 5, 2018 3:38 am

    Being in education at the inner city level, I believe I can (and hopefully do) play a part in reconciliation. Today’s youth have many needs. They are crying out to be respected, yet know very little about what true respect looks like and calls for. Unfortunately, home life has changed so significantly and education and respect are not valued.
    I also feel I played a small part in reconciliation ministry when I worked with the young moms. I have been away from that for almost a year now. I think about the small strides we made and how they felt like crossing massive chasms.
    Grateful for restorative sleep last evening. Continued awareness and gratefulness for air conditioning at school. Many schools in the area have been closed for multiple days now due to the high heat index. Grateful for the beauty and promises of Psalm 86.

  • robert moeller Posted September 5, 2018 6:01 am

    Prayers for Mary’s long work days. Can’t imagine 12 hours at school. I really do not understand the school system in Singapore. Prayers too for Jill teaching in an inner city school.I can identify with that as the last 17 years of my teaching were inner city. Most certainly I was convinced that God put me there and that seems true for Jill as well.

    I believe that we are all involved in reconciliation of some sort. It’s part of daily life. There are those who do far more as the book, The Anatomy of Peace, describes. One my early students became involved with reconciliation ministry in the deep South. It is tough, but essential work.

    Thankful Julie and her daughter had such a wonderful picnic. Thank you, Julie, for your prayers and kind words. Prayers that soon your situation will change for the better, you will find the job you seek, your hands and foot will be comforted, and your daughter will find a job.

    There is slow but steady progress that will enable the move this coming year.
    Getting my finances in shape is a necessity and thankfully that is being accomplished.

    Prayers for the proceedings in Washington DC, may they be done correctly, fairly, justly and wisely. Prayers too for the leaders of the world, so much rests on their actions.

    Have no idea why the follow-up comments by email option no longer works for me. Thankful I can return to yesterday’s posts before sending mine.
    Thank You, Lord, for Your ever presence, wisdom, and guidance.

    • Mary Ng Shwu Ling Posted September 5, 2018 7:30 am

      Thanks Robert!

      Our tea lady is on two days medical leave. We had to continue to cover her job. A student had a ten pages of chinese homework. I had to help him after tuition. No break. Reach home and had dinner. Manager wanted to clarify matters which i felt can be done the next working day.
      Feel like keaving this job

  • Betsy Posted September 5, 2018 7:10 am

    I pray for reconciliation with our government leaders, with the church as a whole and among all believers. Our witness to others is definitely a start in this process. Working with the women through our Kairos ministry offers many broken ladies reconciliation in their relationships with loved ones and also with God. I pray for this ministry to continue.
    Your work with the young moms is another form of that, Jill. I pray that this program continues and that relationships can be forged and lives changed. You are planting seeds that will yield fruit in time.
    Grateful today for safe travels as we go to visit our children for a long weekend. I haven’t seen our daughter in law since her early pregnancy, so I’m anxious to hug her and my son! I covet your prayers for them both! Blessings to my friends here who visit, pray and support others.

  • marilyn horsley Posted September 5, 2018 7:33 am

    I keep a daily prayer journal. Each day I ask God to guide our President, our nations leaders, and all world leaders to work for peace and the welfare of all people. I pray that leaders will work together cooperatively for the good of all people.

    • April Posted September 6, 2018 8:16 am

      Welcome Marilyn …the prayers of a righteous person are powerful….I often do the same. Blessings.

  • Julie Posted September 5, 2018 8:18 am

    I believe each and everyone of us is in the ministry of reconciliation every day. I reconcile myself to my current life circumstances which are tenuous at best. I reconcile mself to my healh issues.
    My keyboard is no longer working, which I must reconcile myself to.
    Robert reconciles himself to moving for Erich. Prayers for their move and success once there.
    Mary reconciles herself to her work situation, prayers that it improves.
    Betsy reconciles herself to not seeing her loved ones often. Prayers for safe travels and a safe pregnancy.
    Jill reconciles herself to her health issues and her mom’s health and mental issues. Prayers for Jill and her mother.
    Welcome Marilyn and prayers for you.
    Prayers for all the UR family

    • Mary Ng Shwu Ling Posted September 6, 2018 7:28 am

      Thanks Julie!

      May all be well for you!

      Blessings!

  • Connie Posted September 5, 2018 8:26 am

    Mary, you can only do so much. I know you give 100% and I pray God will give you extra strength today.
    Thankful for:
    the sunrise with its pale pink sky.
    Yard work (tree trim) completed by very hard-working young men.
    Getting through the heat and humidity yesterday.
    I will receive an Amazon order today that was kind of a spur of the moment purchase, which is not at all like me.
    Blessed Wednesday all.

    • Mary Ng Shwu Ling Posted September 5, 2018 6:18 pm

      Thank you so much dear Connie!

      Enjoy your day and may all be well with you

      Blessings!

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