O Bread of Life from Heaven, ELW 480
Devotion
O bread of life from heaven,
O food to pilgrims given,
O manna from above:
feed with the blessed sweetness
of your divine completeness
the souls that want and need your love.
O fount of grace redeeming,
O river ever streaming
from Jesus' wounded side:
come now, your love bestowing
on thirsting souls, and flowing
till all are fully satisfied.
We love you, Jesus, tender,
in all your hidden splendor
within these means of grace.
Oh, let the veil be riven,
and our clear eye in heaven
behold your glory face to face.
If the bread of life from heaven spoken of in this hymn is referring to the gospel stories of Jesus and the manna from above refers to the food delivered to the people of Israel as Moses leads them out of Egypt, then what’s the reference to pilgrims about?
In our community of Roseville, Minnesota, there are many new pilgrims in our community. In a local elementary school twenty-two different languages are spoken and 81% of the kids are on free or reduced lunch. How is food given to these pilgrims and how are we, as Christians, willing and able to walk with these new neighbors? As one way of answering this question, our congregation is partnering with the school and another church to provide weekend meals and volunteering to walk with kids as reading or math helpers. Through Christ's love may we each be able to extend that love towards others to nourish souls, but also to nourish tummies.
Prayer
Heavenly God, nourish our communities through your creation to provide resources to all of your people. Show us that we have enough and that your love is available in abundance. Amen.