‘At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”’ (v5) 1 Kings 3:4–15
It’s New Year’s Eve, a time when well-intentioned resolutions are made, yet seldom kept. In contrast, the Christian year traditionally starts with the first Sunday in Advent, so is well and truly up and running by now.
In 1755; John Wesley introduced the idea of the Christian renewing their commitment to Christ each year with a Covenant Service. He used material from the writings of the seventeenth-century puritans, Joseph and Richard Alleine. With modifications, it’s something we can benefit from.
His original Covenant Prayer involved taking Christ as ’my Head and Husband, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, for all times and conditions, to love, honour and obey thee before all others, and this to the death’. Wesley wanted to encourage people to open themselves to God, to take a further step each year in their continuous change, a lifetime’s process for every disciple.
This is God’s invitation: that we grow in our devotion, living every day with Jesus effectively. We learn to listen to God’s offer more intently, to consider God’s challenge more seriously and choose to make the space to allow God’s Spirit to prompt us. This is not just a personal response but is to be seen as part of the life of faith we are exploring together with all those within our Christian community.
SCRIPTURE TO CONSIDER: Neh. 1:1–11; Dan. 9:1–19; Luke 11:1–13; John 17:1–26.
A PRAYER TO MAKE: ‘Lord, I am no longer my own but Yours. Help me to live every day with Jesus first, myself last, and others in between. Amen.’
Photo by delayed gratification on Flickr
