Saturday 1st
Scripture: Luke 18:9-14
Reflection:
Sunday 2nd
Scripture: John 9:1-41
Reflection:
Monday 3rd
Scripture: John 4:43-54
Reflection:
How would you have reacted to Jesus words that the boy would live? Would you, like the Royal Official believed and gone home? Or would you have wanted some tangible proof, before you left? Why?
Tuesday 4th
Scripture: John 5:1-16
Reflection:
After thirty eight years, the man was healed by a stranger. Someone who then told him to do what the religious law forbade – to carry his mat on the Sabbath. Yet what was he questioned about – his amazing healing or his carrying? There are times when we are so focused on the small detail, on what we see as important, that we miss the larger, more amazing event, right before our eyes. Can you recall the last time you did something similar? What caused you to look again
Wednesday 5th
Scripture: John 5:17-30
Reflection:
Jesus is speaking about his relationship with the Father. There are, I suspect, some people who, today, will be as uncomfortable with what Jesus claims, as perhaps the people of Jesus' day were. Jesus' words serve as an explanation and as a warning. While we may be tempted to mitigate, or explain away, that which is uncomfortable, perhaps we could see these words as challenging the shallow values of the world and as a source of strength for those who need it.
Thursday 6th
Scripture: John 5:31-47
Reflection:
Some will search the scriptures for tangible proof, for evidence, for justification, for a reason that can only come from faith. We need to go beyond the words, we need to live them, to allow them to infuse our beings. This is both a challenge and a devotion and it can be easier than we often want to make it.
Friday 7th
Scripture: John 7:25-30
Reflection:
Jesus’ words were confronting, challenging and provocative. Some people did not like them, others were confused by them, but they all heard them. How do Jesus’ words affect you today? Why?
Saturday 8th
Scripture: John 7:40-52
Reflection:
The chief priests and Pharisees focused on Jesus, the messenger, assessing his human lineage, wanting to know (for example) which town was he born in, etc. And so they struggled with the message he was proclaiming. We, perhaps all too often, look at who is telling us about the gospel. We ask are they from the right theological school or tradition, are they wearing the right attire, etc and so we miss what they are saying. Sometimes, the clearest, the most powerful witness for the gospel is done by people who have seen the message, not the messenger!
Sunday 9th
Scripture: John 11:1-45
Reflection:
Hold verses 33 to 35 in your heart, and be at peace.
Monday 10th
Scripture: John 8:1-11
Reflection:
No-one condemned her. The law said they could - and should - punish her. But they left, leaving her alone with Jesus. Ever wonder what Jesus wrote on the ground? What if it was a list of sins those gathered had committed? What would you have done if he had written your sin in the dust? Would you have walked away, or sought him out?
Tuesday 11th
Scripture: John 8:21-30
Reflection:
“So Jesus said, ‘When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I am he” (part of verse 28). I suspect that today there would be many people of the faith who are uncomfortable with this statement (and others like it). Why? Perhaps because Jesus’ statement is confronting, it is challenging, it asks us to look at ourselves, to look at the heart of our beliefs. It takes us to places within ourselves, that many people try to avoid. But avoiding the statement, doesn’t change it. Are you willing to look at the heart of your beliefs?
Wednesday 12th
Scripture: John 8:31-42
Reflection:
When we think of slavery, we think of ownership, of possession, of control and ultimately of powerlessness. How many of us would associate these words with sin? I suspect not many. Perhaps this is because we think of sin as a concept, as an idea, as something remote and distant. Something we read about, but don’t really experience? Maybe we need to think how sin is subtlety interwoven into the fibre of our lives. And here I mean the fibre of our own life, not the lives of others around us. Jesus tells us we can be free of sin - do you believe this?
Thursday 13th
Scripture: John 8:51-59
Reflection:
The people listening, did not like what they were hearing. They wanted to stone him, to silence him and stop what they saw as his blasphemy. With our hindsight (and intervening centuries) we know what he was saying and we rejoice. But at the time, they did not rejoice, they did what, even today, we do so often - they stopped listening. They made assumptions and then they rashly acted on their conclusions. Maybe we need to listen more and act less.
Friday 14th
Scripture: John 10:31-42
Reflection:
Jesus was asking the people to look beyond their perceptions of him and his works. He was asking them to see something they resolutely did not want to imagine, let alone entertain as a possibility. So the people reached for their stones. With our perceptions, we understand and do not want to throw any stones. However, before we started on our faith journeys, we may, on hearing the gospel, have had a similar response as the people of Jesus day! Can you remember what event (or experience) led you to change your views?
Saturday 15th
Scripture: John 11:45-57
Reflection:
Was it fear of the Romans, or of the people that prompted the religious leaders to seek Jesus death? Perhaps it was a combination of both. In any event fear can be a powerful emotion. What do you do when you are fearful? Does God have a place in your method of coping with fear?
Sunday 16th
Scripture: Matthew 21:1-11
Reflection:
Where would you be (or where are you) in the crowd? Among those who asked who Jesus was; or among those who provided the answer? Why are you in the crowd you chose? What would it take to move you from one crowd to the other?
Monday 17th
Scripture: John 12:1-11
Reflection:
Judas criticised and denigrated Mary's act of devotion, and love, as extravagant and foolish. The world today seems to delight, not in acts of love or devotion, but in acts of cynicism, denigration, perhaps even violence. It seems to praise and honour the Judas’s and not the Mary’s. Yet acts of love and devotion, like Mary’s, are still being done in places where there is little publicity, little fanfare, little “return”. At least one happened near to you today - did you see it?
Tuesday 18th
Scripture: John 12:20-36
Reflection:
"Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (verse 24). We may not see what will grow from the seed we help to plant, but once we sow it, a crop will certainly be produced. We just need to have the courage to plant, or nurture, the seed of our faith.
Wednesday 19th
Scripture: John 13:21-32
Reflection:
The betrayal by a person we thought was our friend is possibly one of the deepest wounds we will live with. It is one that can take a very long time to heal - if ever. The betrayal cuts our hearts, we experience pain, bewilderment, sorrow and grief. The pain and yearning long for understanding. It can be a long, difficult, road to forgiveness. In those dark, painful, moments, be comforted by knowing that Jesus has been there as well.
Thursday 20th : Maundy Thursday
Scripture: John 13:1-17,31-35
Reflection:
"So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet." (verse 14). In a world that thrives on hierarchical structures, and where the only people who think they matter are those at the top of those structures, the implications from this verse would seem dangerous. Yet Jesus is again teaching by example. He washed their feet and so can (perhaps read should) we. But those at the top are reluctant to do this. Why? Could it be, perhaps they think they would appear to be foolish, could perhaps their egos be too large, could perhaps they have lost touch with love?
Friday 21st : Good Friday
Scripture: John 18:1-19:42
Reflection:
"Here is John's telling of the Passion. People all react differently to these passages of scripture. Some find them distressing, others a source of comfort. How does this passage of scripture affect you? Which of the people in the passion, do you feel closest to? Indeed can you see yourself in any of these passages?
Saturday 22nd : Holy Saturday
Scripture: Matthew 27:57-66
Reflection:
The tomb was sealed in fear. Fear that Jesus' body would be moved, fear about what would happen if the body disappeared. Perhaps also a fear that perhaps he may have been right. The stone failed, it could not stop the resurrection - and fear lost - love was victorious. How about your life and the lives of those around you? Is fear busily rolling stones in to block parts of lives and hearts? Or is love breaking the seals and liberating?
Sunday 23rd : Easter Day
Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10
Reflection:
There are those among us, who do not believe that an angel sat at the empty tomb and spoke with the two Marys. Others believe, most resolutely, that the angel was there. Ultimately these different opinions come down to one's personal beliefs and convictions. But consider this for just a moment: what if the person with the opposite opinion to you, is right. Would that alter your faith? Would it change your view of God? Why?
Monday 24th
Scripture: Matthew 28:8-15
Reflection:
Tuesday 25th
Scripture: John 20:11-18
Reflection:
Wednesday 26th
Scripture: Luke 24:13-35
Reflection:
Thursday 27th
Scripture: Luke 24:35-48
Reflection:
Friday 28th
Scripture: John 21:1-14
Reflection:
Saturday 29th
Scripture: Mark 16:9-15
Reflection:
Sunday 30th
Scripture: John 20:19-31
Reflection:
Monday 31st
Scripture: John 3:1-8
Reflection:
