Tuesday, May 7, 2024  

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Today's Hymn
“I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art”

Thou hast the true and perfect gentleness;
no harshness hast thou and no bitterness.
O grant to us the grace we find in thee,
that we may dwell in perfect unity.

Our hope is in no other save in thee,
Our faith is built upon thy promise free;
Lord, give us peace, and make us calm and sure,
that in thy strength we ever more endure.

from Strasbourg’s Psalms (1545), translation by Elizabeth Lee Smith (1868)
Hymn 624, Glory to God
verses 4–5

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Reflection

Wow. “True and perfect gentleness.”

Some of us, at some point in our lives, on some level, have experienced a sense of abandonment, betrayal, or disappointment. Some of us have been able to overcome those and move forward to engage in healthy, loving relationships. But some of us bear the scars of those experiences and have built walls (or even fortresses) around our hearts and souls. Thus, as imperfect adults, we tend to attach conditions to our love, even sometimes demanding proof of worthiness of our affection.

Perhaps we should learn to be like little children who look to their parents/guardians with utmost trust and total dependence. Can we unlearn our adult skeptical ways and learn to trust and depend on God? Trust that God’s love is “true and perfect” with no caveats, no ifs and buts like we are likened to do.

Can we learn to trust God’s love like little children do? Can we lean into the love that will not abandon us? Can we accept the love that is given to us freely in “true and perfect gentleness” in spite of ourselves? And thus find peace and live into that love? And can we learn to love one another as God loves us? With “true and perfect gentleness: no harshness, ... no bitterness.”

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Prayer
May God bless you and keep you.
May God make God’s grace to shine upon you.
May God be gracious.
And give you peace for ever and ever. Amen.

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Reflection written by Toni Yang, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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