Our Blog

Lenten Reflection for Thursday, March 5 
Ann Mellow 

Mark 2: 1 - 12 

²When he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. ²So many gathered around that there was no longer room for them, not even in front of the door; and he was speaking the word to them. ³Then some people^* came, bringing to him a paralysed man, carried by four of them. ⁴And when they could not bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him; and after having dug through it, they let down the mat on which the paralytic lay.⁵When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’ ⁶Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, ⁷‘Why does this fellow speak in this way? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?’ ⁸At once Jesus perceived in his spirit that they were discussing these questions among themselves; and he said to them, ‘Why do you raise such questions in your hearts? ⁹Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven”, or to say, “Stand up and take your mat and walk”? ¹⁰But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he said to the paralytic— ¹¹‘I say to you, stand up, take your mat and go to your home.’¹²And he stood up, and immediately took the mat and went out before all of them; so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’ 

Jesus is always turning things upside down. What a troublemaker!  It would be so much easier just to go along as usual. Even when things are tough, we often resist changing our perspective.
 
The people who cut through the roof to bring their paralyzed friend to Jesus were willing to take a chance in faith and hope. Perhaps this new prophet would be able to help. And, as is often the case in the gospel, those with power, the scribes who write the rules and shape reality, were not happy at all with Jesus coloring outside the lines and forgiving the man his sins. After all, who does this man Jesus think he is?
 
And Jesus, as is his way, doubles down by performing a miracle, as if to say, “What does it take for you to get unstuck, to change, to see the presence of God right in front of you? This man will walk. Is THIS enough?”
 
How often are we like the scribes, debating the boundaries of our known if sometimes unsatisfying world view and reality, unwilling or unable to see a different way, a scary way, an unknown way, one that is right in front of us – a life-giving way that Jesus holds out to us.
 
And the man in the story was literally paralyzed. But sometimes I can feel that I am also paralyzed, stuck, held back in some way by the daily-ness of life to let God in and allow my life to be transformed. 
 
The Mothers have consistently challenged us as individuals and as a community to take that brave step to walk more closely with Jesus; to open ourselves to God and to unknown possibilities, ones that might even turn our own worlds upside down. To learn to walk anew. It is a journey worth taking, I think. 

Lenten Reflection for Wednesday, March 4 
Ellie Berlyn 

¹ Corinthians 2:1-13

²When I came to you, brothers and sisters,^* I did not come proclaiming the mystery^* of God to you in lofty words or wisdom. ²For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. ³And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. ⁴My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom,^* but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, ⁵so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.

⁶ Yet among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish. ⁷But we speak God’s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. ⁸None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹But, as it is written,

‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
   nor the human heart conceived,
what God has prepared for those who love him’— 

¹⁰these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. ¹¹For what human being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also no one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God. ¹²Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. ¹³And we speak of these things in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual things to those who are spiritual.^*
 

Lenten Reflection for Tuesday, March 3 
Julia Gannon 

Mark 1:14-28 

¹⁴ Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news^* of God,^* 15and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near;^* repent, and believe in the good news.’<sup>* 

16</sup> As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen.¹⁷And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’¹⁸And immediately they left their nets and followed him. ¹⁹As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. ²⁰Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

²¹ They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. ²²They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. ²³Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, ²⁴and he cried out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ ²⁵But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silent, and come out of him!’ ²⁶And the unclean spirit, throwing him into convulsions and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. ²⁷They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, ‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He^* commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’ ²⁸At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.  

These verses always put a smile on my face. A group of men abandoning the comforts and safety of the life they know, and leaving it all behind to follow Jesus “proclaiming the good news of God.” And oh boy, we could all use a bit of good news these days. It’s easy to fixate on all of the negative things in today’s world, but, with God’s help, I want to actively make the choice everyday to celebrate the good news. I want to always celebrate God’s gifts, and share it with those around me who’s eyes might be clouded by darkness. I had a friend once ask me where all of my peace and joy came from, and I simply said “my relationship God”. This gave way to a wonderful conversation about my spiritual journey and walk in Christianity. The act of being joyful and sharing my joy gave me the opportunity to share the good news of God. We can only be successful fishers of men if we carry God’s light, love, and joy. After all, fish love the glittery tackle with feathers and tinsel so I plan to make my spiritual net as bright as it can be.

The second passage is the prefect example of God’s power and mercy. God was able to expel an unclean spirit from a man who was living with a parasite of darkness. God offers us new mercies each and everyday, and that will always give me hope. When I fail or find myself with my own parasite of darkness, God will offer his mercies to help pull me from that place. He will never give up, or shy away from the challenge because we are all worthy of God’s efforts and love.