Seek the profit of providence
Almighty God,
your never-failing providence
orders all things in heaven and on earth;
take from us all that is hurtful,
and grant to us all that is profitable,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Many of the collects in the Book of Common Prayer begin with us addressing the “Almighty God”. It’s a familiar phrase, which fairly trips off our tongues. And yet, it is also true that familiarity can breed contempt. The opening words of this collect remind us of the extraordinary privilege it is to speak to the supreme creator and ruler of all things. But they also remind us of something equally astounding: this Almighty God not only hears our prayers but also deigns to listen to and answer them.
The prophet Isaiah compares the absurdity of silent, stupid, stationary man-made idols with the profundity of the one and only God:
“They hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god;
then they fall down and worship!
They lift it to their shoulders, they carry it,
they set it in its place, and it stands there;
it cannot move from its place.
If one cries to it, it does not answer
or save him from his trouble.“Remember this and stand firm,
recall it to mind, you transgressors,
remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning
and from ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,and I will accomplish all my purpose,’”
(Isaiah 46:6-10)
The Almighty God is the one who has declared the end from the beginning. It is he who has ordered all things on heaven and earth. He is the one whose counsel shall stand, whose purposes will never be thwarted. His providence never fails.
And so he is also the only one able to take from us all that is hurtful. We need only turn on the TV, open the newspaper, look at our social media feed, and speak with our friends to be confronted with the turmoil of the world we live in. So much desolation, anger, sorrow and hate. We despair at how things are. We can’t begin to imagine how they might change. And yet this collect reminds us that the one who is never-failing in his providence is also able to take all that is hurtful from us and grant us all that is profitable instead.
There is great comfort to be found in God’s sovereign ability to answer this prayer of ours. And yet, this comfort is exponentially magnified by the knowledge that God is not merely powerful but also good. So it is that we finish this collect by praying that the Almighty God would answer our prayer through Jesus Christ our Lord — the one who is himself the ultimate demonstration of God’s almighty power and his unending love. As the Apostle Paul teaches us, “all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory” (2 Corinthians 1:20).
Jesus Christ our Lord is always ever the “Amen” to our prayers and the Almighty God’s “Yes” in response to them.
So pray this with me:
Almighty God,
your never-failing providence
orders all things in heaven and on earth;
take from us all that is hurtful,
and grant to us all that is profitable,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.