My dad has a wonderful singing voice that he used many times in worship with a courage I could never equal, he sang solos. One of the ones that brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it was "Ahora Soy de Cristo" (translated "Now I Belong to Jesus"). Those words to that old hymn relate closely to Wesley's Covenant prayer, a model of which follows:
A Covenant Prayer in the Wesleyan Tradition: “I am no longer my own, but thine. Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee, Exalted for thee or brought low for thee. Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal. And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Thou art mine and I am thine. So be it. And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.
Monday: Look at the above prayer. It’s been on this page now for three weeks. Have you made time to pray it? Look at Whose we are! We no longer belong to ourselves, we belong to God! And as such, we should seek to honor our God with our behavior that keeps us away from the evil that the world offers. What’s in your “heart” as Jesus said in the message yesterday?
I have included it in the sermon notes insert of our bulletin since the second Sunday of the New Year. We had a worship service on the first Wednesday based on Wesley's Covenant Service and I just wanted us to be aware of the words.
Yesterday's sermon from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount was on the passage about commiting adultery in our hearts if we even look on someone with lust. This prayer reminds us that if we are to follow Jesus' model of purity of heart, mind and deed, we have to know we belong to Him. We seek to honor He to Whom we belong.
What's in your heart this morning? If it's unpure, unclean, not Spiritually inspired, ask God to remove it so that we can live a life inspired by God.
PRAYER: God of love and life, we thank you for wanting us. Help us to know that we are Yours now and forever. You paid the price for us through Jesus Christ and we ask we may be a blessing to You. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
Friends, as you continue your prayer life today remember the Cude family as we bid farewell to Willis Cude this morning at 10 a.m. Also, Saturday, the Donaldson family is having a graveside service for their mother and father at San Marcos City Cemetery. May God bring comfort to those who are hurting.
We celebrate the five new members we received yesterday at our first Coffee with the Pastor. We'll recognize these new members next Sunday at all three services.
We also thank all of you who came to the Gospel Night and Fish Fry! What an awesome night of praising God through music. If you couldn't make it you missed the tremendous message through music of Wesley UMC's Intergenerational Choir and the leading of their pastor, The Rev. Sylvester Chase. What a crowd gathered and what fellowship and food! Also, what delicious cakes were auctioned too! (If you happened to have bought that carrot cake, I'm available for coffee and cake any time! ;)
Have a great and blessed day!
e.v.
