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Morning Devotion for the Season after Pentecost
June 10, 2024
The Invitatory
The earth is the Lord’s for he made it: O come, let us adore him.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.
Reading:1 Kings 17:1-6
Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, ‘As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.’ The word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘Go from here and turn eastwards, and hide yourself by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. You shall drink from the wadi, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.’ So he went and did according to the word of the Lord; he went and lived by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the wadi.
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Meditation: Jo Ann B. Jones
It seems that there is very little mention of or attention paid to providence. Perhaps we have lost its meaning. I take that to be yet another sign of the growth of secularism in our time. Yet providence yields a sense of constant, unfolding provision that cannot be initiated or sustained by humankind.
Providence is the protective care of God, the guardianship and care that only God can provide. God's providence is the working of his power to uphold, guide, and care for his creation. The providence of God leaves no room for chance or competition between God and another power. God, as the primary cause, causes everything, but this does not remove the ability of creatures to cause or act. Rather, God grants to all creatures their power to act as causes in the world. We cannot know all of the particularities of God’s providential plan; only God knows how all things will work together. God continually exerts his power to sustain his creation, without which the creation would become nothing. There is a sense in which God’s preservation through time of his creation involves a continuous creation.
It is much easier to talk about trust — confidence in God’s goodness and provision in the face of despair and doubt — than it is to live it. God has directed Elijah to hide by the Wadi Cherith, east of the Jordan. This is about a 30 mile journey from Samaria, not an insubstantial journey. The Wadi Cherith is east of the Jordan River. That part of the country is desert and water would be scarce. What would appear to be an inhospitable environment becomes a place of escape and respite for Elijah. This area also offers a place of escape for Elijah. In these few verses God makes use of everything to provide for Elijah. As Elijah trusts God, he must also live on the edge of that trust, that when something else happens, God will again come through.
God has commanded ravens to provide Elijah with food. Ravens are among the birds that God forbids the people of Israel to eat, moreover they often feed as scavengers, eating dead things and sometimes searching for nests to eat eggs or young birds. These ravens act as divine agents. God’s choice of this animal to provide bread and meat for Elijah demonstrates two things: first, that God’s manner of provision can be surprising or unusual, and second, that God’s command overrides the natural instinct of this creature, making it even more miraculous.
All life is evidence of God’s provision, inasmuch as all existence is dependent on God. The impermanence of God’s provisions — the water in the brook, the flour and oil — does not negate their power and goodness, but are part of the difficult and joyful life of trusting God again, and again, and again. And our response is thankfulness, over and over and over, again. As Eucharistic Prayer “We give thanks to you, O God, for the goodness and love which you have made known to us in creation….”
Providence is God's gracious outworking of his purpose in Jesus Christ. There is perhaps no greater example of God's providence in history than is evidenced in the divine preparation of the world for the coming of his Son and the gift of salvation.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
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