Wednesday, April 3
Readings: IS 49:8-15; JN 5:17-30
I take great hope in Isaiah’s words today. In spite of all that has happened to us and in spite of all we have done, God will not forget us, and on the day of salvation God will be there for us. The land will be restored. There won’t be hunger or thirst. The roads will be made level. The world will break out into song. The afflicted will be comforted. Now that’s good news!
The gospel comes from one of John’s more esoteric passages that can be a little hard to understand. Essentially Jesus equates his “work” with that of God in the world. Jesus is about the same work as God is about.
I often wonder if we could say the same. Is our work the work of God? And how would we even know?
Perhaps the first reading holds some ideas. Does our work and life contribute to land restoration? Does our life and work lessen hunger or thirst? Does our life and work remove barriers for people? Does our life and work contribute to joy and creativity in the world? Does our life and work comfort people who are afflicted? And do we see the intersections of all of these?
Clearly there are a lot of ways to live out our calling and contribute to the healing of the world. I always love the Rumi quote that says, ““Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.” The key is to find where your gifts intersect with the needs of the world.
Some of us will do God’s work in grand ways, but most of us will do it in smaller, every day ways. But I think that if we can answer affirmatively to the questions above, then we, too, may be able to echo the words of Jesus that we are trying to do “the will of the one who sent me.”