Service for Christian Unity,
Thursday, April, 22th, 2021
Meditation
Humbly let God do the work by Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt
Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt (1842–1919) was a German Lutheran theologian and one of the founders of Christian socialism in Germany and Switzerland. He was a well-known preacher.
Try not busy yourself too much; instead, humbly let God do the work. Then something will surely come from God. We must always remind ourselves: “Let’s hold back! We must not become important; we must not want to force any of our ideas through.” Hold back so that the work you do doesn’t become your thing (1 Cor. 2:1-5) Jesus is alive, and his victory must be your first concern.
This means you must learn to accept your weakness, your own poverty, and your own limitations, especially when the going gets rough. It is just through your weakness that our Savior can do his work (2 Cor. 12:9). He can manage what you cannot! Therefore, be prudent in pushing your own ideas so that your ego doesn’t take over.
It’s often better not to get too involved in other peoples’ affairs, wanting to have a say in everything, because most of the time we don’t really know what the right step is. In the end, only God can work things out. Especially where there is sickness, poverty, or strongholds of temptation, you will have to realize your helplessness. You don’t need to be a knight shining armor who is all set to kill the devil- no, we must learn to step back in faith and hope and keep the power of Jesus firmly in the center. He is at hand, and what we should desire most is that he does his miracles and signs. When this happens, we can indeed rejoice.
Christoph Friedrich Blumhardt: Everyone belongs to God (Plough Publishing House, 2015, page 118)
Intercessions
Prepared by our brothers and sisters from the Pélussin, France
To adapt according to the place of worship
1/ We pray for all places that welcome and care for elderly people:
May the Holy Spirit give us the daring and creativity to accompany those in this stage of life and to build bridges of friendship between generations.
2/ Many groups and organizations devoted to ecumenism and Christian unity have not be able to meet or pursue their usual activities during this time of lockdown.
May the Holy Spirit revive and strengthen our unity in prayer and revitalize the links that have been established between our churches.
3/ The French-speaking ecumenical review “Unity of Christians” celebrates its 50th anniversary. On this occasion, leaders of several French churches hosted a video conference on April 14 on the theme “our differences are not separations”..
May the Holy Spirit continue to arouse in us prayer and the desire to see the visible unity of Christians realised.