Listen

I will instruct you and teach you about the direction you should go. I’ll advise you and keep my eye on you.

Don’t be like some senseless horse or mule, whose movement must be controlled with a bit and a bridle. Don’t be anything like that!

The pain of the wicked is severe, but faithful love surrounds the one who trusts the Lord.

You who are righteous, rejoice in the Lord and be glad! All you whose hearts are right, sing out in joy!

Psalm 32:8-11

Think

“It’s kind of like riding a bike, once you learn how, you never forget.”

Learning to ride a two wheeler is a rite of passage in our culture. We usually start with a tricycle and graduate to training wheels, which are awkward and precarious. Now new methods are in place to learn to glide and then ride without the inconvenience of three or more wheels. The teaching and tools are changing, but the goal remains the same. We are striving for that two-wheeled freedom of movement and speed. Once we have accomplished the task, even when we don’t ride for years, we can still ride when we encounter a bicycle. We may be a bit wobbly at first, but our muscles remember the motion and we can move forward with some measure of grace.

Faith is like that. We have to practice prayer and love in our formative years so that when we find ourselves lost, we can return to those pedals of faith and grace in the sure knowledge of God’s love for us.

Bronwyn Clark Skov

Pray

Loving God, help me to learn the tools of faith, so that when I stray in this human journey on earth, I can find my way and return to you; to your love and grace for me, your beloved child of God. Amen.

Go

Return to me, says the Lord of heavenly forces, and I will return to you . . .

Zechariah 1:3