Rejoice that you will be preserved!

Author(s)Mark Earngey
Date 14 March 2023
Category Sixty days of prayer
Tags Sixty days of prayer

Almighty and eternal God,
mercifully look upon your people,
so that by your great goodness,
we may always be governed and preserved,
both in body and soul,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Do you feel spiritually weary in body and soul? Perhaps you resonate with the cry of the Apostle Paul, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Romans 7:24). Well, this fifth collect of Lent may be a wonderful help as you continue the Lenten fast and prepare for the Easter feast. It draws upon the stark contrast between God and Man; Heaven and Earth; Saviour and Sinner. It galvanises us in the goodness and governance of God. And it brings our bodies and souls before the loving Lord.

Once again, as in some previous Lenten Collects, we turn to our almighty and eternal God. He stands above the powers which fill the space of this world. He rules the realms beyond the chances and changes which accompany the unfolding of time in this world. And his nature is always to have mercy. Indeed, he is “rich in mercy” toward his people (Ephesians 2:4). When we plead with him to mercifully look upon us, we call upon his divine character and seek his kindness, charity, and benevolence.

“Surely,” says wise David, “goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life” (Psalm 23:6). He knows, as we do too, that the Lord is our shepherd. He governs us as he makes us lie down in green pastures and leads us besides still waters. He preserves us through the wielding of his rod and staff, and as he prepares a table to nourish us — even when we are spiritually famished and bodily frustrated by our opposition. Sadly, this opposition can come from within the church, though it is often an attack from without. But when evil comes, we need goodness to govern and preserve us all the more.

Meanwhile, O how our bodies and souls creak and crumple under the strain of this fallen world. Our bodies long and our souls thirst for the Lord in this dry and weary land where there is no spiritual water (Psalm 63:1). But hallelujah! Our Lord — the Good Shepherd who laid his life down for his sheep — came and called us. He promises us an eternal inheritance (Hebrews 9:15). He promises us that, by following his word, we will not taste eternal death (Jn. 8:51). This is the voice of the victorious one who vivifies us.

Dear reader, the God of peace can preserve your soul and body until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Indeed, the one who calls us is faithful, and he will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:23). Rejoice! For he will lift up and carry his beloved lambs all the way to their heavenly home. The poet Wordsworth captures the thrust of this collect well:

Sweet Mercy! to the gates of Heaven
This minstrel lead, his sins forgiven;
The rueful conflict, the heart riven
with vain endeavour,
And memory of Earth’s bitter leaven
effaced for ever.

Or even better than Wordsworth, pray this with me:

Almighty and eternal God,
mercifully look upon your people,
so that by your great goodness,
we may always be governed and preserved,
both in body and soul,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.