Tree of Life and Awesome Mystery (ELW 334, st. 5)
5 In our call to be a blessing,
May we be a blessing true;
May we live and die confessing
Christ as Lord of all we do,
Christ as Lord of all we do.
Words and music by Marty Haugen
© 1984, GIA Publications, Inc.
Reprinted under OneLicense.net #A730924
Devotion
“In our call to be a blessing,” says the hymn. “May we be a blessing true.” The lyrics recall the story of Abraham, when he is called to leave his homeland to travel to a new land, sight unseen. There, God promises him, he will become the father of a great nation, he will inherit the land, and he will be blessed.
The hashtag “#Blessed,” used on social media, too often signifies material prosperity or so-called “humble bragging.” But Abraham and his descendants are blessed not for their own sake, but in order to be a blessing to the whole world. “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed,” says God to Abraham (Genesis 12:3).
We the church, along with our Jewish brothers and sisters, take Abraham’s story as our own. We are also blessed, but not for our own sake, and certainly not to draw attention to ourselves. We are blessed in order to be a blessing. May God give us grace, then, to be a conduit of God’s blessing to the world around us.
Prayer
God of Abraham and Sarah, we thank you for all the blessings you have given us. Help us to be blessings to those around us, friend and stranger, in the name and for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.