Let us pray:
Almighty and everlasting God, you govern all things both in heaven and on earth: Mercifully hear the supplications of your people, and in our time grant us your peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Todays first reading displays the affirmation of God’s willingness to provide
directions and support. We hear how God provides Moses with the direction we are expected to follow. We are promised and provided with prophets that interface and facilitate God’s hopes and words for us and His promised presence as we grow and mature in our relationship with Him.
Along with His patience we also are shown the consequences of choosing to disregard God’s words and what the chosen prophet will suffer for that effort. Our understanding of what is and is not relevant to our faith is shown in the example displayed in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. Explaining the relevance of food and how it impacts faith shows the true value of intelligence versus conviction. We are prone to value our faith as it is impacted by material things. How we provide examples of what is truly important can guide others in the direction of God’s grace. If we display habits that are not grounded in our acceptance of the one true God we are failing in our conviction to aid others in accepting God’s love.
Our conviction to share the good news is absolutely reflected in the responses to Jesus in Marks. The members of the synagogue are amazed by the authority Jesus teaches with. As He is confronted by an unclean spirit and summarily sends it away as it recognizes the He is “the Holy One of God”. The very act of displaying His authority reminds us that in our daily ministries we are invited to act as well as share confidence in Christ’s example. When we deal with distractions and display actions that allow concentration on life’s events with an assurance our Savor displayed it can result in our providing others with support and grace allowing compassion and faith to grow closer in our faith.
May our hearts and thoughts always be ready to step out with confidence,
grace, hope and love displaying the covenant we warmly embrace.