Monday, May 15, 2023
(click here to listen to or read today’s scriptures)
Spring cleaning
I am the vine and you are the branches. This marks the beginning of the Church, and the beginning of the historical era of the Church. A couple thousand years later, it’s a good time to look beyond the outer garments and look inside at how we live and what we do as God’s kids.
During Passover each Jewish family looked to their own homes, first by spilling lambs’ blood and painting it above their doors … then as time passed by removing every shred of yeast from their homes, moving the sofa and vacuuming out the popcorn, checking in the kids’ lunchbags for old animal crackers … spring cleaning!
And now in the era of the Church, when Jesus is the bridegroom and we are the bride, what kind of cleaning does Jesus call us to? On this Monday after Mother’s Day, we will be doing laundry (which is to say, Margaret will be doing laundry), but what else does he call us to?
Over and over Jesus shows us how to clean ourselves starting on the inside, with our prayer, our fasting and our almsgiving. We learn to listen to God inside ourselves, and then go where he tells us to go. We kind of know already where that is; he points out the populations in Matthew 25 and calls them “the least of these.” There’s a great deal of energy involved as we move from inside listening to outside action, and back again.
We set sail from Troas, making a straight run for Samothrace, and on the next day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, a leading city in that district of Macedonia, and a Roman colony. We spent some time in that city.
Margaret has been thinking about the missionaries who come to us in America from Korea, Kenya, Mexico and many other places. Some come for education, of course, and some come to pray for us and share what they are learning about the love of Jesus. Can you imagine the energy unleashed when we ask God to weave us together, make us one?
On the sabbath we went outside the city gate along the river where we thought there would be a place of prayer. We sat and spoke with the women who had gathered there.
In the Apostles’ Creed we say that after Jesus’ resurrection, he “ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.”
Our Pastor Matt asked us yesterday, “What’s Jesus doing there?” He answered his own question from John 17:11.
I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.
What is Jesus doing while he sits at the right hand of God, the one he calls Holy Father? He prays constantly for us.
So when we pray, we are not only praying TO Jesus, but we are praying WITH Jesus. This is a paradigm shift for me, and if I get used to the idea, it will change the way I pray.
Let the faithful exult in glory, let them sing for joy even upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their throats. This is the glory of ALL his faithful.
(Acts 16, Psalm 149, John 15, John 16)
(posted at www.davesandel.net)
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