Reflection for June 28 or Day 173
Nehemiah 13, Psalm 141, I Corinthians 16
Two last chapters. Today, our reading of Nehemiah and of First Corinthians comes to a close. And the authors of both are full of remonstrations, advice, and direction.
Nehemiah recounts his final reforms and asks God to remember his good deeds in preserving the purity of Jerusalem. Paul admonishes the early Church in Corinth to respect those who have been sent to them and to continue firm in the faith.
How typical it is for those who have committed themselves to a particular project to use whatever means necessary to help ensure that it doesn’t fail. Both Paul and Nehemiah have spent their lives doing what they believed God had called them to do. Of course, they want to preserve their legacy and continue the fruit of their ministries. Their recollections of the past and their instructions for the future are direct and clear.
The teacher who retires from a school, the executive who leaves a company, the pastor who departs a parish…all after serving, and working and building for years…doesn’t the same thing occur? Letting go of something we have birthed and nurtured is always difficult. And sometimes our ego gets in the way. That’s when the psalmist can help: “Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord, keep watch over the door of my lips!” (Ps 141:3) The reality is that sometimes letting go is what must be done, and sometimes our vocation is to preserve what has transpired for those who come after us. The gift of discernment is solely God-given and something for which we all need to pray.
TVR Doug McCaleb is Dean of Trinity Cathedral, Miami
Nehemiah 13, Psalm 141, I Corinthians 16
Two last chapters. Today, our reading of Nehemiah and of First Corinthians comes to a close. And the authors of both are full of remonstrations, advice, and direction.
Nehemiah recounts his final reforms and asks God to remember his good deeds in preserving the purity of Jerusalem. Paul admonishes the early Church in Corinth to respect those who have been sent to them and to continue firm in the faith.
How typical it is for those who have committed themselves to a particular project to use whatever means necessary to help ensure that it doesn’t fail. Both Paul and Nehemiah have spent their lives doing what they believed God had called them to do. Of course, they want to preserve their legacy and continue the fruit of their ministries. Their recollections of the past and their instructions for the future are direct and clear.
The teacher who retires from a school, the executive who leaves a company, the pastor who departs a parish…all after serving, and working and building for years…doesn’t the same thing occur? Letting go of something we have birthed and nurtured is always difficult. And sometimes our ego gets in the way. That’s when the psalmist can help: “Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord, keep watch over the door of my lips!” (Ps 141:3) The reality is that sometimes letting go is what must be done, and sometimes our vocation is to preserve what has transpired for those who come after us. The gift of discernment is solely God-given and something for which we all need to pray.
TVR Doug McCaleb is Dean of Trinity Cathedral, Miami
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