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Stirring
Have you ever misplaced or lost something, and it stirs little worry? You just know that Read More
James Melchiorre | Read 2 Corinthians 4:7-12
That the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh.” That’s very aspirational and not easy. Tougher than seeing the face of Christ in everyone we meet. Jesus is such a worthy model—the best example, many of us would say—so it makes sense to emulate him. But how?
One answer: Imitate a practice we witness in Jesus throughout the Gospels—being proximate. He’s proximate to events, to people, to the context of life in his society. When a terrified woman faces an early morning stoning by what sounds like a lynch mob, Jesus is there. Likewise with a man crippled for thirty-eight years who’s lying by the pool of Bethesda. Jesus gives special attention to the poor and marginalized, and he’s also proximate with the privileged in society. He has a sycamore-tree conversation followed by dinner with Zacchaeus, two encounters that change the previously dishonest tax collector’s life. He agrees to see the sick daughter of Jairus, the synagogue leader but interrupts the trip to heal an unnamed hemorrhaging woman. So for the life of Jesus to be more visible in our mortal flesh, how then are we to live? Volunteer at a shelter for temporarily homeless women. Share a meal with someone whose circumstances differ from yours, and discover the similarities of your lives. Tutor a bilingual child, whose undocumented parents speak only Spanish at home, and learn the challenging nature of the child’s life. Join a prison support group and get to know the parents of a son caught in the web of mass incarceration. The news photographer Robert Capa is quoted as saying, “If your photographs aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.” We can say the same for Christian discipleship. Let’s get proximate.
Jesus, keep us near the Cross and near to our neighbors with all the small crosses they must bear. Amen.
The call of Samuel and the intimate language of the psalmist this week reflect God’s knowledge of and care for each individual. God sees each one of us, no matter where we are in life and no matter how far we might feel from God. Paul seeks to encourage the Corinthians with this same truth. Believers may be afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, beaten down, even killed; but they are never defeated. The power of a personal God flows through them, even if this is not evident to the eyes of the world. We likewise should be personally caring toward those around us. Jesus models this in Mark, demonstrating that showing mercy is more important than following even religious regulations, for mercy is the heart of God.
• Read 1 Samuel 3:1-20. When has a young person in your life or that of someone you know had to face the devastating consequences of a single bad decision? How did that affect your actions and behaviors?
• Read Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18. When have you experienced that life has no guarantees? How did you sense God’s presence in that time?
• Read 2 Corinthians 4:5-12. How do you attempt to be open to seeing Christ in everyone you meet?
• Read Mark 2:23–3:6. When do you, like Jesus, try to be proximate to persons in need? How has that changed your life?
Respond by posting a prayer.
I join many of those who will pray for you as you seek to discern what you are called to be at this moment. May God grant you the courage to fulfill that calling. May we all open our eyes and see the misery, open our ears and hear the cries of God’s people, and, like God through the Lord Jesus Christ, be incarnate amongst them.”
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