Christ Church Rockville Lenten Devotion
Jer. 17:19-27
Rom. 7:13-25
John 6:16-27
John 6:16-27 is a passage of the new testament familiar to many of us. Right after the miracle of feeding the multitude with five barley loaves and two small fishes (I wonder how they counted the great multitude), the disciples cast off in their ship without Jesus. It must have been a rushed exit because there were high winds (like when our fronts come through). They were startled after they were away from the shore to see Jesus walking on the water to join them. They were frightened and amazed.
How is this relevant today—what does our sea look like? There was no plastic floating, no rapidly rising water level, no oceans so foul, you would hesitate to walk in them. The birds are still feeding from the sea but choking on plastic, we lose homes built near the oceans in fierce storms, and we are going deeper and deeper in the ocean to discover what wonders are still hidden from us.
Lent offers a time for me to reflect on our world—yesterday, today, and tomorrow. To treasure what I have, to mourn what we have lost and to look ahead for how it can be a disciple that while fearful at times, can still be amazed and believe in tomorrow with God’s grace.
