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File:US Navy 051014-N-8796S-046 A Pakistani child sits in his fathers arms aboard a U.S. Navy MH-53E Sea Stallion helicopter while his mother and father are air lifted to medical treatment.jpgDay 30: Monday in the Fifth Week of Lent

Isaiah 33:2

O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for you.
….Be our arm every morning,
….our salvation in the time of trouble.

“Be our arm every morning.”  Maybe the phrase has experienced some corruption over the centuries.  A minor change in the Hebrew text would say: “You have been our help.”  It fits the context better.  But the imagery of ‘arm’ is visceral.  And Exodus 6:6 says: “Say therefore to the Israelites, “I am the Lord, and I will free you from the burdens of the Egyptians and deliver you from slavery to them. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm.” 

“Be our arm” conveys images of a child marveling at a parent’s strength and finding safety and security in those arms.  Such arms pluck you from the water when you slip off the dock.  They lift you up when you fall.  They set you in a tree upon branches you cannot reach.  They send you soaring on a swing.  They carry you when you are worn.

“Be our arm every morning.”  Be the strength we need for the day.  Be the guardian we require.  Be the deliverance we await.  Set us upon your shoulders that we may see.  Guard us from dangers we do not see.  Guide us on paths that are right and true.  Hold us tight when fear rises.

And not for us only, but for all the communities to which we belong.  Be the guardian of our family.  Guide our schools and workplaces.  Defend our congregations.  Protect our neighborhoods and cities.  Be the salvation for our nation.  Guard the whole human community.  Guide us on right pathways.  Stem the harm that we may sow.  Forgive the failings of mind and heart.  Be our salvation in time of trouble.

Gracious and ever-present God,
whose mercy knows no bounds,
and whose arms are ever open to your world:
Call us forth from all that binds
And make us joyful in your service.

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Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:US_Navy_051014-N-8796S-046_A_Pakistani_child_sits_in_his_fathers_arms_aboard_a_U.S._Navy_MH-53E_Sea_Stallion_helicopter_while_his_mother_and_father_are_air_lifted_to_medical_treatment.jpg  U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 2nd Class Timothy Smith / Public domain