6th July 2024
When I read the Bible, especially familiar stories from the Gospels about Jesus, I like to put myself on the edge of the action as someone who was there but isn’t named. Usually this means I take on a female character because without doubt they were there but centuries of translation by men has removed them from the picture.
So the next 4 weeks will use the Gospel reading for the Sunday but the reflection will be from the viewpoint of Deborah, an independent young follower of Jesus.
CHANGE OF PLANS AND A NEW DIRECTION
Read Mark 6: 1 – 13
This has been an interesting week, a tale of two halves really. It began with worship in the synagogue at Nazareth. We were all there. Jesus was on fire, preaching powerfully and really capturing the attention of those who were listening – well in my mind anyway. However as the service progressed I began to hear murmurings and mutterings from some of those gathered there. Pointing the finger and grumbling about Jesus they began to make snide remarks about his family, how he was just a carpenters son from the village so who did he think he was standing up at the front.
Their voices became quite loud and I felt really sorry for Jesus, and his family, because they had all come to show their support for him. Fair play to Jesus, he carried on and even healed a few people but it was clear that the rejection hurt him – he even said as much.
Anyway since then our plans seem to have changed. Jesus never lets anything get him down for long and so he’s taken a new approach to his mission. The disciples have been sent out on their own – well in pairs anyway. This way I guess we can cover more ground with the message of Good News that Jesus is determined to share with all who will listen.
They’ve gone off, full of enthusiasm and with clear instructions from Jesus ringing in their ears. I wait with excitement to hear how they get on. Meanwhile I’m staying close to Jesus and learning more from him every day.
We pray:
Dear Lord, sometimes life does not go the way we plan.
We may face opposition, or obstacles are put in our way.
Remind us that whatever we face you are always faithful and will walk with us,
even as we step forward in a completely new direction.
Thank you Jesus for being our dependable friend.
Amen.
Bronwen Braisdell – MWiB Communications Officer
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
