Praying in Peace, Walking in Wounds and Eating in the Encouragement of Jesus.
Good Morning Friends,
We are in this together you know…this following of the truth, the life and the way of Jesus. But by far the most difficult is the following of the way. Here we find that the truth is God. The life is the Spirit. And the way is Jesus in this wonderful dance we too are invited to join. You see the challenge in life is not only in believing and trusting but then moving on beyond belonging to this relationship to actually being guided in this mystery of consciousness in the presence of the Trinity…this Three in One guiding our very next step.
It is a reality with a burden for in recognition of the presence of God in this way we must react in response realizing that there is nothing we did to experience the Father maybe not even seek Him and that the Spirit is everywhere requiring the need for Jesus to guide us.In order for this to happen and I think for us to really be converted and to be enabled to carry on the work of Jesus, we must more and more become aware of his presence in our friends. We must experience Jesus, and I do not think we have been very good at sharing this, which prompts the writing here…about our Praying in Peace, Walking in Wounds and Eating in the Encouragement of Jesus.
Scripture: Hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
Romans 5:5 (NRSV)
For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
Matthew 18:20 (NIV)
When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.
Luke 24:30-35 (NIV)
“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:5-6 (NRSV)
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
John 21:15-17 (NRSV)
About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray.
Luke 9:28 (NIV)
Message: Friends, the road to Jesus is paved with hope. Still Jesus challenges all priorities…our comfort, family, jobs, possessions…everything in exchange for this radical healing love and then asks us to share the joy of the relationship with others. But coming to this meeting with Jesus cannot be imposed or mapped out in an earthly plan. We have to join in God’s plan through the active participation of prayer with others but getting there is always a bit of a surprise for this prayer stuff may not be exactly what we thought it was…scripture does not say two or more…it says two or three. Meditate on that for a while. We have a lot to learn from the prayer life of Jesus….praying for the little children…asking Peter, James and John to pray with him at the Transfiguration and at Gethsemane. We have everything to learn from meditating on scripture in prayer, in seeing the mystery of the presence of Jesus in others as He heals their wounds and bringing out of us the whole person, our true…our best self.
Pray we celebrate the Eucharist…Communion together in community and know that here is where Jesus opens the Scriptures for us to hear. Pray we embrace the Jesus way of life through Prayer with Jesus…. Pray that our first experience of God is now seen as bringing to light the reality of Jesus and how in relationship to this and the gift of the Spirit we discover our true selves in the radical unifying way of Jesus…. Pray we get better at sharing our story in His story. Pray that every kind word we utter becomes a seed of hope that God desires to bring to fruit. Pray God empowers us to be agents of his Grace. Pray the Lord’s Prayer alone, with a friend, with a friend and another, and with someone in need of bread as a way of remembering our wounds and the healing, the teaching, and the loving presence of Jesus in others. Pray we release or fears, hurts and pains into Jesus’ wounded hands.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 