Voice: Jennifer
Today is Monday, 31st of August. Take a moment to be still. Be aware of His presence and His love.
Psalm 123
1 To you I lift up my eyes,
O you who are enthroned in the heavens!
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants
look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
till he has mercy upon us.
3 Have mercy upon us, O Lord , have mercy upon us,
for we have had more than enough of contempt.
4 Our soul has had more than enough
of the scorn of those who are at ease,
of the contempt of the proud.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and shall be forever. Amen.
Acts 9:34-43
34 So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39 And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, 40 but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, 41 not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42 And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
This is the Word of the Lord
Thanks be to God
In Peter’s message in the house of Cornelius, he declared that Jesus Christ is Lord of all. God’s saving grace is not restricted by nationality or ethnicity.
In Cornelius’s house, the gospel was openly proclaimed to the Gentiles, and God confirmed their welcome into his people by pouring out the Holy Spirit upon them.
It took some effort for Peter to understand that the gospel was also for the Gentiles. His outlook had to be transformed through the vision he received on the rooftop. God challenged Peter to set aside deeply rooted prejudices and to welcome those whom he had previously regarded as unclean.
We are recipients of this same blessing. In generations past, many people made great sacrifices to bring the gospel to our city and proclaim it in a language we could understand. Cultural and racial barriers had to be crossed, and prejudices had to be set aside so that we might be welcomed as equal members of God’s family.
Today, people of many nationalities and ethnicities come to work, study, and live in our nation. Some may work in our homes as domestic helpers or caregivers. Others may be our colleagues, classmates, neighbours, or friends.
Like Peter, we may initially be reluctant to share the gospel with foreigners or people of a particular race. Like Cornelius, some may already be God-fearing and religious in their own way, causing us to assume that they do not need an encounter with Christ. Yet God desires all people “to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4).
Let us open our hearts to love them and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us in being witnesses for Christ. Let us ask the Lord to remove every prejudice and fear that might prevent us from reaching out to others, remembering that Jesus Christ is Lord of all.
We end with the Collect for today:
Almighty God,
who called your Church to bear witness
that you were in Christ reconciling the world to yourself:
help us to proclaim the good news of your love,
that all who hear it may be drawn to you;
through him who was lifted up on the cross,
and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.
We invite you to join in this song written by Bishop Robert Solomon, From Many Shores.
1 From many shores you gathered, our fathers, mothers all
And gave as home this island, so precious though so small
They toiled and built our nation, as You blessed them with grace
O God of our salvation, we seek Your holy face
Chorus:
Bless Singapore our home with peace, and make us a blessing,
to the nations near and far, we worship You our King,
may everyone know who You are!
2 We’re many tongues and colours, teach us to live as one
Bless all our dreams and labours, in all Your will be done
Help us to honour, cherish, all that is good and right
Let all Your people flourish, as we live in Your light
3 We pray for all our children, our leaders, workers too
That we would all be open, to trust Your word as true
Let righteousness and justice, Your mercy and Your love
Be found in home and office, as we each other serve
4 We know our strength is in You, our future in Your hands
Our nation Lord come renew, come heal and bless our land
Let every street and heartland, echo the name of Christ
To every heart and home extend, Your love Your grace Your light
© 2004 Robert Solomon & Jusuf Kamadjaja (12 August 2004)
Link to today’s Morning Office
About This Daily Devotion
This weekday devotion is drawn from the Morning Office and is part of a project initiated by Revd Canon Terry Wong, with contributions from clergy and members across various parishes. Each entry includes selected readings from the appointed Psalm and another Scripture passage, accompanied by a reflection and prayer. An audio option is also available, often ending with a hymn or song. We encourage you to both read and listen. Unless otherwise stated, the reflections are written by Revd Wong.
Our aim is to help Anglicans engage more deeply with our rich liturgical tradition, while meeting the devotional needs of today’s believers. This project began on Ash Wednesday 2025 and is offered on weekdays only.
For feedback, please write to us at info@mpcc.org.sg. We also welcome donations to MPCC. Information on how you may give can be found in this link.
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