Eternal Father Strong to Save (ELW 756, Verses 3 and 4)
3 O Holy Spirit, who didst brood
upon the chaos dark and rude,
and bid its angry tumult cease,
and give, for wild confusion, peace:
oh, hear us when we cry to thee
for those in peril on the sea.
4 O Trinity of love and pow’r,
all trav’lers guard in danger’s hour
from rock and tempest, fire and foe,
protect them wheresoe’er they go;
thus evermore shall rise to thee
glad hymns and praise from land and sea.
Devotion
We are all among the travelers spoken of in verse 4. And it has certainly been a year of “danger, tempest, fire and foe”—of sudden, unexpected storms, of pandemic, wildfires, economic upheaval and loss. Perhaps you have even felt your boat was being swamped. It was a year we felt at our wits end to respond to the barrage of life’s challenges. So in the midst of our fears, our uncertainty, our doubts, our pain, our loss, and at times our sense that God is not doing what God should, there still comes God’s promise of grace. The grace that these are exactly the times for which faith has been given.
In the midst of and in spite of fear and terror that life—and death—can bring, it is in these moments of grace that we can experience the peace and stillness though the storm continues to rage.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, fill us with that very grace and faith so that we too will be filled with your peace. Amen.