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Read Genesis 1:1-2:4a. In this first creation account, we have a systematic ordering of the universe, each day building upon the one before. The final creative act in this account is found in verse 26: “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness.” Every human bears the image of God and is tasked with the stewardship and care of God’s unfolding, ongoing creation. This story is not meant to be read as a scientific textbook telling how the universe was created. Instead, it tells us the “who” and “what” of creation. God created order out of chaos simply by breathing and speaking life into being. Blessing is pronounced over each stage, as God calls it good. In many ways, it feels as if we have lapsed back into chaos.

What if, instead of trying to control and contain the chaos, keeping it as far from ourselves and the people we love, we recognize it as part of the fabric of God’s story? What would it look like to release those things we can’t really control anyway and ask God to bring something good from it? What would it look like to be a good steward of that which you can control?

Offer a prayer of praise for the beauty of creation, nature and humankind alike.

Read Psalm 8. Here, the psalmist marvels at how big God is, creator and ruler over all of creation, and yet intimately aware of and mindful over every person. The important question asked in verse 4 is, “What are human beings…?” In the story of creation, we are told humans are caretakers for all of creation, including the natural world and the rest of humankind.

In what ways do you act as a good steward of God’s creation (understood as the natural world and humankind alike)? How might the way you live out your care for all of creation be a psalm of praise?

Today, as modern mystic Pierre Teilhard de Chardin invites: “Try, with God’s help, to perceive the connection – even physical and natural – which binds your labor with the building of the kingdom of heaven.”

Read 2 Corinthians 13:11-13. As Paul closes his second letter to the church of Corinth, he promotes unity and peace within the body of Christ. “Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace,” he writes in verse 11. Some might read this as a call for uniformity of thought. I do not believe that’s true. If we didn’t offer one another different perspectives, the church and its people would remain stagnant and stunted. Instead, it seems Paul is encouraging the church to look for the foundational values upon which they can agree: acting in ways that are peaceful, especially in times when there is difference of thought; offering grace to one another, as grace has been offered to them through Jesus Christ; and to greet each other warmly, extending welcome and hospitality to all.

Has this been your experience of church? How do you think our church is viewed by those in the community? How could we better reflect the values for which Paul is advocating in this letter?

In prayer, ask God to bless and inspire the church – both locally and more broadly.

Read Matthew 28:16-20. According to the Wesley Study Bible: “What is needed for the world to believe the message of Jesus? Live it! Telling, in Matthew’s Gospel, is about our mission as the church. Without mission there is no Christianity. The mission of the church today, as it was for the early church, is to reconcile us to God. But first, Jesus tells us, we must be reconciled to our sisters and brothers. Reconciliation – healing the rifts created by violence, discrimination, and greed – that is the church’s mission. Reconciliation for the sake of the flourishing of all life is what being a disciple of Jesus is all about.”

How well are we, as individuals and the church, living out our mission as envisioned by the writer of this commentary? What concrete steps can we take to accomplish this mission?

Offer prayers of healing for those affected by violence, discrimination, and greed. Ask God how you might become a force of reconciliation in your community.