Genesis 1:31 - And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
This devotion pairs with this weekend's Lutheran Hour sermon, which can be found at lutheranhour.org.
Saint Augustine, the North African bishop, who lived 1,600 years ago, once said, "When you see the Trinity, you see love." That's the perfect love of the Father, Son, and Spirit. God, after all, is love, 1 John tells us. Augustine said again, "People go to gaze at mountain peaks, to gape at the boundless tides of the sea, to admire the broad sweep of rivers, the encircling oceans, and motions of the stars, and yet they leave themselves unnoticed. They do not marvel at themselves."
And for Christians, marveling at self does not mean self-centered individualistic naval gazing. It means praising God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for making a community of humans, especially communities of love, for placing us into families and giving us friends who are sometimes closer than our sisters and brothers, for providing us with allies and supporters who help us to realize the fullness of our humanity because they treat us with respect, divine dignity. It means marveling at the sacred gift of other persons who come into our lives in the name of love and as opportunities to return love, the love of God, which comes to us in Christ Jesus our Lord.
WE PRAY: Holy God, faithful and unchanging, enlarge our minds with the knowledge of Your truth and draw us more deeply into the mystery of Your love, that we may truly worship You—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—One God now and forever. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Rev. Dr. John Nunes.
Reflection Questions:
1. Name some human attributes that show people are impressive examples of God's creation.
2. What do you think are some of the reasons God's creation pleased Him when He was finished?
3. What types of communities do you live in? How do they support you? How do you bless others?
Today's Bible Readings: Psalms 53, 55, 58 John 13:1-20
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