April 7 - Give to all who thirst and hunger
Contributed by
Carla Friesen Weldy, director of Alumni, Church and Parent Relations on Wednesday April 07
Scripture
Luke 22:14-23
When the hour came, he took his place at the table, and the
apostles with him. He said to them, ‘I have eagerly desired to eat
this Passover with you before I suffer; for I tell you, I will not eat it
until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.’ Then he took a cup, and
after giving thanks he said, ‘Take this and divide it among
yourselves; for I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit
of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.’ Then he took a loaf of
bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to
them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in
remembrance of me.’ And he did the same with the cup after
supper, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new
covenant in my blood.
But see, the one who betrays me is with me, and his hand is on the
table. For the Son of Man is going as it has been determined, but
woe to that one by whom he is betrayed!’ Then they began to ask
one another, which one of them it could be who would do this.
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Devotion
During Spring Break, I traveled with the Chamber Choir as they
toured churches and schools in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
One of my favorite songs from the tour was a South African hymn,
“Haleluya! Pelo tsa rona.” To the beat of a djembe drum, our
students joyfully clapped and sang the second verse of the hymn
in the English translation:
“Hallelujah! We sing your praises!
All our hearts are filled with gladness!
Hallelujah! We sing your praises!
All our hearts are filled with gladness!
Christ the Lord to us said:
‘I am wine, I am bread, I am wine, I am bread,
give to all who thirst and hunger!’”
In our passage today from the Last Supper, Jesus tells his
followers to drink the wine and eat the bread in remembrance of
him, to remember that he is the only one who can truly satisfy us.
But the last line of the aforementioned hymn, “give to all who thirst
and hunger,” reminded me and the attentive audience members
that we need to go one step further: we need to give the good
news of Jesus Christ “to all who thirst and hunger,” and we need to
do it with the same joy and enthusiasm with which the Chamber
Choir sang the words.
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