“On My Heart, Imprint Your Image,” ELW 811
Devotion
On my heart imprint your image,
blessed Jesus, king of grace,
that life's troubles nor its pleasures
ever may your work erase.
Let the clear inscription be:
Jesus, crucified for me,
is my life, my hope's foundation,
all my glory and salvation!
I was watching a movie the other day in which memories were imprinted on the mind of the main character in order to cause him to do something in opposition to the kind of person he was. But when his true memories began to resurface, he found himself confused as to what was real.
In some ways we have been imprinted with a false sense of who we are. We believe we are separate from that which is around us, that we are autonomous in our choices, that what we do doesn't affect what is around us (most of the time).
The truth is that we are related to all that is around us. Our choices are guided by many influences, and whatever we do often has repercussions in the whole of creation. This is the imprint that Christ makes upon our heart. It is this profound awareness that it is in Christ that we live and breathe and have our being.
Prayer
God of life and love, imprint on us your image that we may be guided toward the life you have seen for us. Forgive us when we stray, and welcome us back with love and joy. Amen.