{"id":20961,"date":"2023-06-08T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-08T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailchi.mp\/urc\/urc-daily-devotion-thursday-8th-june-2023"},"modified":"2023-06-08T06:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-06-08T05:00:00","slug":"urc-daily-devotion-thursday-8th-june-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/urc-daily-devotion-thursday-8th-june-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"URC Daily Devotion Thursday 8th June 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

Zechariah 8:9-13<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thus says the Lord of hosts: Let your hands be strong\u2014you that have recently been hearing these words from the mouths of the prophets who were present when the foundation was laid for the rebuilding of the temple, the house of the Lord of hosts.  For before those days there were no wages for people or for animals, nor was there any safety from the foe for those who went out or came in, and I set them all against one another.  But now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as in the former days, says the Lord of hosts.  For there shall be a sowing of peace; the vine shall yield its fruit, the ground shall give its produce, and the skies shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.  Just as you have been a cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you and you shall be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.<\/p>\n

Reflection<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here, Zechariah brings his audience and us back down to earth.  There is still plenty of work to be done; and perhaps there\u2019s an oblique reminder of Haggai\u2019s words that prompted the community to start rebuilding the temple as well.  <\/p>\n

There\u2019s another reminder – of the \u2018bad old days\u2019 of hardship, fear of enemies and feeling alienated from God; days to which no one wants to return.  The promise of God, says Zechariah, is a time of blessing and fruitfulness, the order of nature will be restored and peace, wholeness, stability will be their experience henceforth.  Their reputation in the world as a nation abandoned by its god will be transformed as God\u2019s scattered people are drawn back to form a new, faithful, community that is evidently receiving countless divine blessings.<\/p>\n

However, the emphasis is on God\u2019s intention that they become a blessing on the nations, when this time comes.  This resonates with the call of Abraham (Gen.12:1-3) at the start of God\u2019s work of salvation, through whom all nations would be blessed.  God\u2019s blessing doesn\u2019t bestow privilege, nor is it designed to restore the recipient\u2019s, or God\u2019s, reputation. It\u2019s always something to be received thankfully and used as a means of blessing others, to draw them into the same relationship with God that we enjoy.<\/p>\n

Zechariah\u2019s oracle ends as it began, \u2018Let your hands be strong\u2019, i.e., get on with the work that\u2019s before you; and don\u2019t be afraid.<\/p>\n

Sometimes it\u2019s hard to believe that God wants to bless us; and it\u2019s scary to realise the responsibility that comes with divine blessing.  Remember, God never asks of us more than we are capable of accomplishing with the risen Christ walking beside us.  So rejoice as God\u2019s beloved, blessed, children and get on with whatever work God has given you.<\/p>\n

Prayer<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gracious God, thank you for all the blessings that are ours.  We know that we\u2019ve done nothing to deserve them; and we are conscious of people both near and far who lack so much of what we frequently take for granted.
We are truly grateful for your generous gifts of love.  Help us to use everything we receive in ways that bring blessings to others, in the name of Jesus.  Amen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Zechariah 8:9-13 Thus says the Lord of hosts: Let your hands be strong\u2014you that have recently been hearing these words from the mouths of the prophets who were present when the foundation was laid for the rebuilding of the temple, the house of the Lord of hosts.  For before those days there were no wages … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “URC Daily Devotion Thursday 8th June 2023”<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20961","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20961","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20961"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20961\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20961"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20961"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20961"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}