WATCHWORD:
4 I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus. 5 Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge. 6 This confirms that what I told you about Christ is true. 7 Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. 9 God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:4-9
20 God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant. 21 So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:20-21
Meditation:
Saying Grace
What has been your family tradition as you gathered around the table. Do you hold hands and say a prayer of gratitude for the food before you? Does your father or your grandfather call all to have grace. To you recite it together, maybe some version of “Johnny Appleseed”?
In our house we say a grace that is as familiar as the Lord’s Prayer: “God is great, God is good, and let us thank Him for our food. By His hands we must be fed. We thank you, Lord, for our daily bread. Amen.”
When we say grace we are expressing our gratitude for all that the Lord provides, and it goes beyond our nourishment, it goes to the very heart of our Christian walk, eternal salvation. A grace is something we don’t earn, it is a gift from our Lord and savior and it comes without our earning it. And technically even the food is not something we actually earn by growing it or paying for it it comes to us because of the love of God.
God’s grace is so much bigger and so much greater than we could ever thank him for. However, in our small act of saying thank you, of expressing gratitude as we sit down to have our meal, can remind us of God’s unfailing love and how privileged we are to be children of God. So at the next meal, go big and broad and all inclusive, and think about how thankful we truly are for the gifts that he has given to us, beyond the food we’re about to partake.
Graces:
God is Great
God is great.
God is good.
Let us thank Him for our food.
By His hands, we are blessed.
Thank you, Lord, for our daily bread.
Come Lord Jesus
Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest,
And let this food to us be blessed.
Amen
Readings for the Third Week of Lent:
Isaiah 55:1-9. Psalm 63:1-8. 1 Corinthians 10:1-13. Luke 13:1-9.
Prayer for Today:
God, grant us your warm embrace. We thank you for your grace. Amen.
