Monday, Fifth Week of Lent

MONDAY, FIFTH WEEK OF LENT

Deep Words of Deep Trust

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Psalm 23:5

For a long time, I prayed the words, “The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want. Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose. Near restful waters he leads me to revive my drooping spirit.” I prayed these words in the morning for half an hour sitting quietly on my chair trying only to keep my mind focused on what I was saying. I prayed them during the many moments of the day when I was going here and there, and I even prayed them during my routine activities…it is good to know that millions of people have prayed these same words over the centuries and found comfort and consolation in them. I am not alone when I pray these words. I am surrounded by countless women and men, those who are close by and those who are far away, those who are presently living and those who have died recently or long ago, and I know that long after I have left this world these same words will continue to be prayed until the end of time. The deeper these words enter into the center of my being, the more I become part of God’s people and the better I understand what it means to be in the world without being of it.

Lord, thank you for the faithful witness of believers of all ages.

Henri J. M. Nouwen

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