huddled in fear | John 20.19-20
MONDAY
This week’s reading: John 20.19-31
REFLECT
On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. John 20.19-20 | ESV
Then evening fell on that day of days, that first day of the week. The doors had been sealed tight – locked, bolted, and chained – the disciples huddling behind them in fear, terrified that they would be the next targets of the religious powers that be. And then, poof!, right in the middle of that huddle of fear stood Jesus – and before they even had time to react he breathed the words “Shalom alecha!” meaning “Peace be with you” or in every day lingo, “Hello there!” No sooner had he breathed the greeting than his hands were on display right before their faces showing the tell-tale marks of crucifixion, and then he lifted up his tunic, exposing a nasty wound in his side marking the impact of that lethal spear thrust. Fear beat a hasty retreat before the joy that now flooded the soul of each of the disciples – they saw the Lord, and one look was all they needed! MAV (Mike’s Amplified Version)
RECEIVE
This is so us.
Huddles and puddles of fear.
We live in a nation that spends, what, $500 billion annually or whatever amount on defense? Let’s not go all political here, but we tend to become reflections of the prevailing culture around us. We seek the security of locked doors, impenetrable walls, building defensive works in our lives more elaborate than those of the Japanese on Iwo Jima.
Yes, we are all huddled with the disciples behind those locked and barred doors. And what a high cost our imagined security extracts! The beauty of this upper room moment is that Christ doesn’t “stand at the door and knock.” He just pops up right in the middle of our insecurities, saying, “Peace, y’all!”
We so desperately need to be infiltrated.
We so desperately need to let ourselves be infiltrated.
By peace.
Hope.
Joy.
Presence.
By the reality that John many years after this upper room moment celebrates in his letter to later huddles of fearful disciples:
God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ’s. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.
We, though, are going to love—love and be loved. First we were loved, now we love. He loved us first. 1 John 4:17-19 | MSG
RELATE
Where in your life right now do you sense you are huddled in fear? How might Jesus already be popping up in your own circle of fear, announcing his peace? How can you embrace him and his peace?
RESPOND
Lord, I welcome you into the midst of my huddle and puddle of fear today. Give me eyes to see your wounded hands – wounds not only now healed, but healing. And let that glimpse of you make all else beat a hasty retreat before me. Through Christ.
rabbouni | John 20.15-18
FRIDAY
This week’s reading: John 20.15-18
REFLECT
Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her. John 20.15-18 | ESV
Mary totally assumed it was the groundskeeper talking to her, and so she asked him the same question as she looked away – “Please sir, if you’ve carried him off somewhere, please just tell me where you put him and I’ll come take him off your hands.” Then he says to her, Jesus does, “Miriam.” Mary’s eyes shot back to the ‘groundskeeper,’ and her ears having opened her eyes she gasped in their shared native tongue, “Rabbouni!” (translation: “Oh my dear teacher!”). Taking hold of her hands now grasping at him, he tells her gently, “You have to let me go! Soon I’ll be heading back – going up, more like it! – to my Abba. So off to my brothers, and tell them where I’m going – up to Abba, mine and theirs; up to God, mine and theirs.” Now it’s Miriam the Magdalene who’s making tracks, spilling all this at the feet of the disciples: “I have seen the Lord! And he said thus and such to me!” MAV (Mike’s Amplified Version)
RECEIVE
Your turn now. Reread the entire text for this week. Then sit with it in silence. Open your imagination. Put yourself there at the tomb. Disciples have come and gone, and you still stand there with tears from tortured questions. And then you see him – but you don’t know it’s him. “Why all the tears?” you hear him say to you. You turn away to explain, but then he says it. One word. The one word that breaks you, that melts you. What does he call you? What does he say to you? What does he tell you to do?
Listen!
And then let him lead you in your response to his voice.
RELATE
Mary seems to be trying to hold on to the Jesus she had known and Jesus is telling her to let go.
What outdated images of Jesus, of the Divine, do you need to release?
RESPOND
Lord, give me the grace to cling to you as you are, not as I remember you being or wish for you to be. Confront me with the fresh possibilities of resurrection life outside the tomb of my own shattered dreams. Unleash resurrection in and through me! Through Christ.
why all the tears? | John 20.11-15
THURSDAY
This week’s reading: John 20.1-18
REFLECT
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” John 20.11-15 | ESV
But Mary stayed put right in front of the tomb – she wasn’t ready to go anywhere. And she stood there, weeping. And then, looking through her tear-filled eyes, she peered into the tomb as well – and observes not the empty clothes but two heavenly messengers dressed in white and sitting one at the head, the other at the foot of the slab of rock Jesus’ body had been lying on. They spoke to Mary in unison: “Woman, why all the tears?” “They’ve taken my Lord and I have no idea where they’ve put him!” she exclaimed tearfully. And, perhaps hearing a footfall behind her, she spun around to see Jesus standing right there – only she had no clue it was Jesus. Jesus calmly asks her, “Woman, why all the tears? Who are you looking for?” MAV
RECEIVE
It’s come to be known as the Via Dolorosa – the Way of Grief, of Suffering, of Pain. An ancient trail of tears from the old city of Jerusalem to the place of the Skull. It’s just about 2,000 feet long. Mary Magdalene still thought she was walking it. Sometimes so do we – and sometimes we are.
This is the beauty of the Passion narrative.
What starts off as a trail of indescribable suffering, unbearable pain, and unquenchable tears, yields to a place of springs, a place of Life, of tears of joy. Life is thoroughly woven together with those two long, teary threads – trails – of suffering and celebration.
Both trails meet at the empty tomb.
Of course it wasn’t empty to start with. Just a day before it had been filled with the sickly sweet smell of a corpse laid to rest, the stone rolled before it with the finality of death itself, sealed and guarded by the powers that be. Now it contains an empty cocoon watched over by angelic sentries whose very garments brighten Sheol ‘s gates, causing them quite literally to shudder, and the stone, rolled in place by man’s hand as if to end the Story with an indelible, giant, deathly period, is rolled back by Another.
A new thread.
A new story.
A new trail watered by unstoppable tears of joy.
If we follow Jesus long enough, we will come to this place – the place where our endless trail of tears finds its end in the happy question, “Woman, why all the tears?”
Wait for it.
RELATE
Where in your life are you ready to see the tears of suffering replaced with tears of celebration?
RESPOND
Lord, there are still so many tears so often blinding my eyes, obscuring my vision. How I long to hear that question, “Why all the tears?” Sustain me along the Via Dolorosa as I am still faced with it here with clear echoes of that question at the tomb. Give me occasion to weep for joy. Through Christ.
seeing is believing | John 20.8-10
WEDNESDAY
This week’s reading: John 20.1-18
REFLECT
Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes. John 20.8-10 | ESV
Now that other disciple (you know, the one who got to the tomb first?) stepped in. And getting a closer look, he believed – for even though ancient Scripture made clear he had to rise from the dead, they were oblivious to that. So off they went, the disciples back to home base trying to sort it all out.
MAV (Mike’s Amplified Version)
RECEIVE
This is so human, so like us. Real life doesn’t play out like a script.
With hindsight we see ancient texts that clearly point to resurrection – from “You are my Son, today I have begotten you” in Psalm 2 to “You will not allow your Holy One to see decay” in Psalm 16. We read those repeated “heads-up” moments of Jesus with the disciples: “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”
And then we shake our heads and wonder, “What was wrong with them?” Why aren’t they camped outside the tomb waiting for the blessed moment? Why instead are they cowering in the dark behind closed doors, fearing every strange knock in the night? Oblivious to the Scripture they heard week after week in their own synagogues, likewise oblivious to what seem to be point-blank, can’t-be-missed statements of Jesus made right in their faces.
Yes, so like us.
We too tend to miss it for the most part, don’t we? Resurrection life breaking in around us, in us, through us, and we stand there breathless with Peter and John in the empty tomb before empty grave clothes, slowly connecting the dots, slowly concluding, “He must have risen.”
It’s why I believe this story.
Not only did it happen – it still happens.
And we are its living and reliving characters.
RELATE
What have you seen that caused you to believe? Or are you still running to the tomb for proof?
RESPOND
Lord, here I stand, breathless in the tomb before the undeniable evidence of Life beyond it. Let the reality of Life sink into this too often hard, cynical, disbelieving heart, and let genuine faith arise in me. Through Christ.
empty cocoon | John 20.3-7
TUESDAY
This week’s reading: John 20.1-18
REFLECT
So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. John 20.3-7 | ESV
They lit out – Peter and that other disciple did, heading towards the tomb. They were running together, the two of them – but that other disciple outran Peter, reaching the tomb first. But he just peered inside, taking note of the grave clothes lying there, quite empty, but he would go no further. Then comes Simon “the Rock” hot in his tracks, rolling right past him into the tomb. He saw the grave clothes lying there quite empty as well, studying them carefully – along with the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head, the facial cloth in its place, the strips of burial cloth in their place, all wrapped up in place like an empty cocoon. MAV
RECEIVE
It’s quite the task, reconciling these resurrection eyewitness accounts. Who all came to the tomb, what they saw, what they did. For some that is an evidence of falsity, for others of veracity. I’ll leave it for you to chase that rabbit through the apologetic texts of your choice, if you wish. I would just observe that births tend to be confusing, disorienting, messy scenes experienced from multiple perspectives. Yet one fact remains: a child was born; a tomb was empty. And this is perhaps most important for us to see in this resurrection story: the resurrection itself is unobserved.
No one sees Jesus exit the tomb.
There’s no moment by moment recounting of his body being regenerated, of him slowly sitting up – or was it a leap? – and then of his dramatic departure – what, through the stone? The resurrection itself is not seen or chronicled. It happened behind the concealing stone, out of their view, out of our view.
All we have here are a group of confused and muddled human beings suddenly confronted with the absence of death and soon with the very real presence of Life – and then the race is on to sort it all out.
Welcome to church.
The catalyst of resurrection works like yeast out of sight in us too, behind that seemingly unmovable slab of reality. And then suddenly that reality rolls, leaving exposed the empty cocoon of our old existence, leaving us like Peter and John wide-eyed and jaw-dropped as we try to come to grips with the wondrous, messy, unexpected reality of Life.
Yes, welcome to church.
RELATE
Do you see your old life as an empty cocoon of burial clothes lying in the tomb, or are you still waiting for new life to emerge? Is there anything we can do to help this resurrection to happen? If so, what?
RESPOND
Lord, wake me up to the reality of resurrection right before me this day. Unleash resurrection in and through me. Through Christ.
a new day beckons | John 20.1-2
MONDAY
This week’s reading: John 20.1-18
REFLECT
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” John 20.1-2 | ESV
Sabbath is now done. A new day beckons over the horizon, and Mary Magdalene (“bitter tower”) presses into it in the fading darkness, arriving at the tomb – only to see the stone removed from its opening. So she runs to Simon (the Rock) and to that other disciple who was always enjoying such a special place in Jesus’ affections and she bursts in, “They’ve taken the Lord! Right out of the tomb! And we’ve no idea where they’ve put him!” MAV (Mike’s Amplified Version)
RECEIVE
“Our four Gospel writers all complete their narrations of the gospel of Jesus with a story, or stories, of Jesus’ resurrection. They come at it from different directions and provide different details, but one element is common to each of them: a sense of wonder, astonishment, surprise. Despite the several hints scattered throughout the Hebrew Scriptures and Jesus’ three explicit statements forecasting his resurrection, when it happened, it turned out that no one – no one – expected it. The first people involved in Jesus’ resurrection were totally involved in dealing with his death. Now they had to do a complete about-face and deal with a life. As they did it, they were suffused with wonder.”
Eugene Peterson, Living the Resurrection
The premise of Peterson’s book Living the Resurrection is that the resurrection of Jesus is not merely a fact of history to be observed and established, but a present reality to be lived. We fight intensely for the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus, but then leave it on the shelf as we begin our religious exercises to improve and shape ourselves into what we think God wants us to be.
But resurrection is not just a past fact, it is a present catalyst.
Peterson continues:
“We live the Christian life out of a rich tradition of formation-by-resurrection. Jesus’ resurrection provides the energy and conditions by which we ‘walk before the Lord in the land of the living” – the great Psalm phrase (116:9).The resurrection of Jesus creates and then makes available the reality in which we are formed as new creatures in Christ by the Holy Spirit. The do-it-yourself, self-help culture of North America has so thoroughly permeated our imaginations that we ordinarily don’t give attention to the biggest thing of all – resurrection. And the reason we don’t is because resurrection is not something we can use or control or manipulate or improve on.”
More is at hand as we now transition from Passion narrative into Resurrection story. More is called for than mental acknowledgement of an ancient event.
The Sabbath is now done.
A new day beckons over the horizon.
And, with Mary, we now arrive at the tomb. And as we do, with her we press into that new day in the midst of the fading darkness into a life opened by his suffering but lived by his resurrection.
RELATE
In what ways have you experienced resurrection as a “present catalyst” in your own life? What are some areas of your life where you’d like to see this catalyst applied?
RESPOND
Lord, as I spend these weeks pondering the resurrection and the events surrounding it, flowing from it, let the reality of the resurrection be lifted off historic page and be absorbed into the marrow of my existence. Let me be defined not only by the fellowship of your sufferings, but also and ultimately by the power of your resurrection. Unleash resurrection in me, and through me. Through Christ.
where were you??? | John 11:28-32
WEDNESDAY
Reflection 138 of 240
REFLECT
When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11:28-32 | ESV
And with that said, she turned and left. She went back into the house and whispered to her grieving sister Mary, “The Rabbi is here and he wants to see you.” Mary didn’t slip out quietly, she created quite a stir by rushing out, quickly making her way to him. Jesus, meanwhile, hadn’t moved an inch towards the village. He stayed right where he was when Martha met him. Seeing her get up and rush out like she did, the local Jerusalem crowd who had been staying with her trying to console her thought for sure she was hurrying to the tomb in grief to weep more there.
Mary made a beeline to the very spot where Jesus still stood, and when she saw him, instead of giving him a piece of her mind, she collapsed at his feet, sobbing Martha’s same line, “Lord, if you were here, my brother wouldn’t be dead!” MAV (Mike’s Amplified Version)
RECEIVE
So there he stands.
On the edge of their village, the edge of their grief.
Waiting now for them.
What does this awkward meeting look like?
What do we say and do when we come face to face with the God who has so bitterly disappointed us?
Martha, mature, responsible, sensible, seems to put a good face on her disappointment.
“You’ve let me down, yes you have. But I still trust you. I still believe that God listens to you, that you are moving in his kingdom rhythms, that you are the One.” Faith is affirmed. She says the right things, but behind them lies the painful words of her bitter disappointment: “If you had been here my brother would not be dead.”
Translation: Where were you?
Yes I believe, but you sure haven’t made it easy for me. Where were you?
It’s clear she hasn’t come out expecting a fix or solution, looking for a mortified corpse to be reinvigorated with resurrection life. Oh that will happen, one day. But not now. She’s not stepped out of her circle of grief still looking for a miracle. She steps out because there is nowhere else for her to go.
And after her comes Mary.
Passionate, impetuous Mary who could get lost sitting at Jesus’ feet with the guys, forgetting all other responsibilities much to her older sister’s chagrin. Mary comes too.
Did she go to scream at him?
To give him a piece of her mind?
To give him a quick kick in the shins?
Whatever she might have had in mind, all she can manage is collapsing at his feet in grief.
No faint affirmation of faith, no claim to continued trust and affection.
Only tears and the heartbroken confession/complaint: “If you had been here my brother wouldn’t be dead.”
Where were you?
Oh the things we can learn from two heart-broken sisters…
RELATE
If Jesus were quite literally to show up like this in the midst of your greatest loss, what do you think you would have said and done? Why?
RESPOND
Lord, thank you for waiting, for standing on the edge of my pain, inviting me to come when I am ready – to scream at you, to ask you why, and ultimately to collapse at your feet and simply weep. Thank you for not being the God of quick fixes – even though I long for those much of the time. Thank you for making space at your feet for me. Through Christ.
standing on the edge of our grief | John 11.20-27
TUESDAY
Reflection 137 of 240
REFLECT
So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” John 11:20-27 | ESV
Someone had slipped in among that somber crowd and whispered to Martha that Jesus was almost there, and as soon as she heard that, she quickly left the house, while Mary stayed put.
It wasn’t exactly a happy meeting.
When Martha intercepted Jesus en route, the first thing out of her mouth was, “Lord (((where were you???))) if you were here, my brother wouldn’t be dead right now! But I still believe, I still know that whatever you ask, God will be right there on the spot with an answer.”
Jesus responds, “Your brother will rise from the dead.”
“Of course he will,” Martha replied, “at the end of time, at everyone’s resurrection.”
“I am the resurrection and the life, period! When someone trusts in me, puts it all on the line for me, death is but one stop before the final destination of life – and death will never, ever keep anyone with such a heart of trust in me from that ultimate destination of life. So what about you, do you believe this – do you trust it?”
“Yes, Lord, I do!” she insists, “this is where I’ve taken my stand – that you are the Messiah, the Chosen One, the Son of God, making your grand entrance into the world.” MAV
RECEIVE
Friends flocked to the side of the two grieving sister hearts, consoling, comforting, trying to make them (and no doubt themselves) feel better. But it’s Life showing up on the corner that draws the sisters out, one at a time.
What could this meeting be but awkward?
What do you say to the Lord who has so deeply disappointed you?
What do we say to anyone who has deeply disappointed us?
It speaks volumes that the sisters did get up and go to him.
And isn’t that interesting: He stood on the edge of the village waiting for them to come to him.
He could have made a grand entrance.
He could have raised Lazarus first and then presented him alive with a divine, “Tada!”
But he stands out there on the edge of their grief.
Waiting.
Inviting.
I’m here.
Come when you’re ready.
Once again, the one who was entitled to the Messiah complex is the only one who doesn’t have it.
Christ doesn’t barge into our grief and loss, tidying us up and fixing it, fixing us. He stands on the edge of our grief, leaving the initiative with us, his very presence there inviting us to step out of our circle of grief.
But when we are ready, and not before.
Oh the things we can learn from Christ…
RELATE
What is the deepest, most profound grief you have experienced? How did you process it? Who was present to console you? How did you (if you did) experience God in the midst of your grief?
RESPOND
Abba, I tend to look for you with a splash right in the middle of what is going down in my life, hopefully with a ready fix in hand. Make me aware of your presence on the edge of my life, inviting me to step out.
flat-lining, zombie hearts | John 5.25-29
TUESDAY
Reflection 57 of 240
REFLECT
“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. John 5.25-29 | ESV
Believe me, believe me! The hour approaches – no, wait – the clock is sounding even now! Flat lining, zombie hearts are suddenly awakened by the voice of the Divine Son, and those who hear, sit up and live. The Father is bursting with life within, and he has placed that same inner, bursting, overflowing life right into the heart of his Son. So it’s life or death – and it’s all in the hands of the Son, because he is the Ultimate Human Being, and that’s where the Father wants this authority to rest.
So, will you stop freaking out over all this? Talk about those who are flat lining springing to life, the hour approaches when every cadaver who’s been laid out on the cold slab within any tomb will suddenly hear his voice, and out of the tomb they will emerge. Everyone will live, but some larger than others. It’s a bountiful resurrection of Life for those who have lived bountifully and benevolently; but for those who have followed foul and destructive paths the only resurrection they can anticipate is a resurrection to judgment that will make them wish they were back in the tomb, flat-lined. MAV (Mike’s Amplified Version)
RECEIVE
“So then, death is at work in us, but life in you.” It’s the fundamental kingdom rhythm: Life coming through death. As Jesus continues his faceoff with the religious judges in the Temple courts, another passage comes to mind contrasting the way of the judges and the way of Jesus:
Unlike Moses, we have nothing to hide. Everything is out in the open with us. He wore a veil so the children of Israel wouldn’t notice that the glory was fading away—and they didn’t notice. They didn’t notice it then and they don’t notice it now, don’t notice that there’s nothing left behind that veil. Even today when the proclamations of that old, bankrupt government are read out, they can’t see through it. Only Christ can get rid of the veil so they can see for themselves that there’s nothing there. Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him. (2 Corinthians 3:13-18 in the Message, of course.)
The Father is bursting with life, and it’s contagious. That’s the message of Jesus before these masters of religion.
Living Spirit rather than chiseled stone.
The great tragedy is that the religious spirit of slavery Jesus was facing down in that Temple courtyard can become such hardened, chiseled stone, that even Christ’s clarion call of resurrection only rolls them out of the tomb, unchanged stones, rolling over a precipice of judgment that refuses life.
RELATE
How does Jesus’ discourse on the heart of the Father challenge or sharpen your concept of God?
RESPOND
Abba, let this Flatlined zombie heart stir to fresh, invigorating, unhindered life today. Through Christ.
REFLECT | RECEIVE | RELATE | RESPOND 