Regardless of what is going on around you, may what and who is above, bring purpose and peace in all that you do today.  “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hand and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorposts of your house and upon your gates.” (Deut 6:4-9)

These words are known in Judaism as the “Shema,” the most common Jewish prayer that illustrates the Jewish peoples’ declaration of their faith and allegiance in the One true God.  This prayer is often said upon rising in the morning and before turning in for the night. As a child, this was the first prayer I ever learned in my home and while attending Hebrew School–as an adult, it is a prayer I cherish having discovered the fulfilled prophecies of the promised Messiah written in the Old Testament scriptures.

No matter where you are on your faith journey, may you find peace in loving God despite all the ways we can get sidetracked, much like the Israelites did when Moses recited these words as a cornerstone for living. May your day be shaped by God’s love and filled with His Shalom, His peace.