Undivided

If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot last. And if a household is divided against itself, that household can never stand.
Mark 3:24,25


Jesus refutes the claim of the scribes that it is the devil who is working through Him and casting out demons.  Simple logic shows that when something is divided against itself it cannot stand.

I cannot help thinking of dear friends who have separated after thirty years of marriage.  There has been no infidelity, simply disunity on a subject that has grown so big that it has over shadowed their love.

Jesus prayed more for unity among His followers than anything else. Why?  Because a house divided will surely fall. Its like the law of gravity. We cannot escape this fact. And the opposite is also true. There is a strength  a power in "oneness" whenever there is unity.

I need to more an agent of unity, in my home, in my parish, in my work space, in my world.

Lord Jesus, You prayed that we may all be one as You and the Father are one.  Let the Power of One be a hallmark of my life.  
Little Flower, please pray for me.

Mad, Bad or Messaiah

Jesus went home, and once more such a crowd collected that they could not even have a meal. When his relatives heard of this, they set out to take charge of him, convinced he was out of his mind.

Mark 3:20-21

Jesus reputation has grown like wild-fire.  He has become the latest "hot prophet" at a time when prophets came, flared brightly and then died away.  His family is concerned He is to become another casualty.  

There are three possibilities about who Jesus is.  He is either mad, bad or who He says He is.  His teachings have stood the test of the greatest minds over the past two thousand years, ruling out He was mad.  The enduring love that He has invoked over the same period of time rules out He was bad.  This leaves who He says He is.  

"But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." Jn 20:31.  This makes all the difference for everyone, for me, today.  

Thank you Jesus that You are the Way, the Truth and the Life.  I place my trust in You.

Little Flower, please pray for me.

Sit and Listen

You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings, but an open ear. You do not ask for holocaust and victim. Instead, here am I.
Ps.39:7

Psalm 39 is a song of praise.  The psalmist writes that the greatest act of praise is to be simply present to God.

This can be the hardest and the easiest thing to do. Hard in that making time to put aside everything and focus purely on God is difficult.  Easy in that anyone can simply sit and listen.  God makes praise easy for us.

I love entering into songs of praise and worship but this is not the purist form of praise, according to today's psalm.  I need to practice more sitting and listening.

Lord Jesus, here I am.  Speak to me Lord, Your servant is listening.
Little Flower, please pray for me.

Lord of All or Not at All

there appears a second Melchizedek, who is a priest not by virtue of a law about physical descent, but by the power of an indestructible life.
Heb.7:16

The writer of Hebrews is emphasising the perfect priesthood of Jesus by claiming it was of Him that scripture referred to when it was written, "You are a priest of the order of Melchizedek, and for ever".

Abraham, the spiritual father of us all, had a right relationship with Melchizedek.  He was blessed by him, he gave the first ten percent of his possessions to him.  This gives us a template to adopt when relating to Jesus.  To be blessed means to submit, it involves a physical bowing before the one conferring the blessing.

My receiving of blessing from Jesus is only limited by my willingness to submit to Him.  If I'm honest, I would have to say not every area of my life has been submitted to the will of Jesus.  Where I perceive a lack of blessing in my life most likely indicates an area I have not submitted.  It's time to start bending the knee...

Lord Jesus, You are either Lord of all or not at all.  Give me courage and trust in You to submit those areas of my life I anxiously hold on to.
Little Flower, supreme example of submission, please pray for me.

Pleasing Unto Him

May the spoken words of my mouth, the thoughts of my heart, win favour in your sight, O Lord, my rescuer, my rock!
Ps.18:14

Psalm 18 declares how the glory of creation is in perfect harmony with all of God's law, both declaring God's glory.  The psalm finishes by vowing that my words and thoughts may also be pleasing unto Him.

This is a great verse of dedication.  It is the perfect response to the verse in today's first reading; "everything is uncovered and open to the eyes of the one to whom we must give account of ourselves". Heb.4:13.  When I acknowledge that all my secret thoughts and actions are seen by God, my natural response is, "may they all be pleasing unto Him".  

This is not a response of fear but one of love.  The God who knows all about my darker side still loves me, so I want my words and actions to please Him, ...all of them ...starting today.

Dear Jesus, You know the temptations I wrestle with.  I hand them all over to You, my rescuer, my rock.

Little Flower, please pray for me.

Rest

The promise of reaching the place of rest that God had for the Israelites still holds good, and none of you must think that he has come too late for it.
Heb.4:1

The writer of Hebrews reminds us that the rest promised to the first people of God still holds true for us today.  This is a true rest, one worth making sure we attain.

Rest.  Next to happiness, this would one of the great common desires of man.  In an age full of technology that promises more free time and rest, we are an exhausted generation. Times of rest, true rest that leaves you refreshed and revitalised, are rare occurrences.

I recently had a camping holiday.  Physically it was a time of exertion; erecting tents, setting up equipment, tramping and swimming.  To cook and eat an evening meal took two hours.

Yet, it was a time of rest.  I came back feeling revitalised.  I was away from the regular demands of life and it was rest-giving. The beauty of the place showed the finger prints of God and I was very much aware that this was a God-given time and place of rest.

These oasis' of God-given rest are out there.  I just have to seek them and step into them.

Thank you Lord for Your promise of rest.  Help me recognise the places of rest Your have prepared for me.
Little Flower, please pray for me.

Soften Up

The Holy Spirit says: If only you would listen to him today; do not harden your hearts, as happened in the Rebellion, on the Day of Temptation in the wilderness, when your ancestors challenged me and tested me.

Heb. 3:7-9

The writer of Hebrews warns against unbelief.  Unbelief is described as a condition of a hardened heart.  A hard heart comes from "sin's deceitfulness" and will deny us entry into the kingdom.

The antithesis of a hard heart is a soft heart.  A soft heart is vulnerable to being hurt by others.  My heart gets especially hardened when I get hurt.  I harden my heart to try and protect it.  Yet, here we are being told by the Holy Spirit to soften up, become vulnerable.  

Jesus is the ultimate example of a softened heart.  He is love and compassion incarnate.  It cost Him dearly but look where it got Him in the end... at the right hand of the Father.  If I want to "share in Christ", which I do, then it's time to soften up, become vulnerable and yes, maybe get hurt.  The end result is worth it.

Lord Jesus, it's scary allowing my heart to be soft, to be touched by others.  Help me soften up Lord that I may be with You.
Little Flower, please pray for me.