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A look at the appointed gospel from the Revised Common Lectionary for May 17, 2020.
“[Jesus said to the disciples:] “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.””
My Two Cents….
Jesus promises that his followers will never be alone. He tells them, on the night of his betrayal, that he will not leave them orphaned. No matter what might happen - they will be okay.
Wow! What a promise! Never alone, they will always have God with them. Lucky buggas. I guess that is a perk of being one of the “Original Twelve” (eleven, actually; by this point, Judas has left the party to do the dastardly deed.)
There are times when I feel like Jesus’s words to those ancient followers don’t apply to me. After all, he spoke them almost two thousand years ago to someone else. How could they be for me?
There are times when I feel alone - or left alone. Sometimes life is so overwhelming - my troubles and worries are so big and I am so small. Turning inward, I find myself inadequate and unable. The downward spiral is a rapid descent. Maybe this doesn’t happen to you - but it is a part of my reality.
My fatal, though frequent, misstep at the point of inward retreat, is to forget. I lose track of my identity as a beloved child of God. In the life-giving waters of my baptism, God promised me to be ever near. God’s spirit claimed my life. I became a part of a fellowship with the Risen Christ. The words Jesus spoke to those ancient disciples were said again to me. I, too, am never alone. God’s spirit is near to me; it is as close as my next breath.
As we head into this week, filled with all its challenges and opportunities, I need to remember ‘whose I am’. Lest I get caught up in less-than-helpful spirals, it is important for me to return again and again to the promises of a Loving God. My life depends upon breathing deeply of the Spirit that is ever near and beckons me into fellowship with Jesus.
That fellowship opens new possibilities and responsibilities. It won’t let me think only of myself or hide within. The same Spirit that accompanies me in this day seeks to redirect my attention to others. My life is connected.
Guess what? So is yours! We are together.
In Christ's Light,
Walt
Permission granted to share today's content with family and friends. Copyrighted 2020. Walt Lichtenberger
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