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June 23, 2023

Provisions in the Wilderness

Lindsey Krinks   |   Read Romans 6:1-11

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Lectionary Week
June 19–25, 2023
Scripture Overview

The story of Hagar and Ishmael being cast out from Abraham’s house reminds us that even when we are in our darkest hour, God doesn’t abandon us. God is faithful and meets us in the wilderness. The psalmist calls out to God from a place of desperation, yet even in desperation, there is confident hope in God. Paul reminds us that as Christians, we participate in the death and resurrection of Christ. The powers of sin and death no longer have the final say over our lives. Jesus teaches us that discipleship will not be easy, but that God’s care for us is great. It is only when we’re willing to lose our lives that we will find them.

Questions and Suggestions for Reflection

Read Genesis 21:8-21. Consider a time you’ve excluded someone. What do you wish you would have done differently? How might a daily Examen practice help you right the wrongs you caused or learn from your mistakes?
Read Psalm 86:1-10, 16-17. In what ways do you need God’s help in your life today? Consider writing a prayer to more deeply connect with God about your needs.
Read Romans 6:1b-11. Consider the author’s question “What does freedom from sin look like?”
Read Matthew 10:24-39. In what ways have you become too comfortable in your discipleship? Where is God calling you to be more faithful?

Respond by posting a prayer .

Romans 6:1-11

1 So what are we going to say? Should we continue sinning so grace will multiply? 2 Absolutely not! All of us died to sin. How can we still live in it? 3 Or don’t you know that all who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore, we were buried together with him through baptism into his death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too can walk in newness of life. 5 If we were united together in a death like his, we will also be united together in a resurrection like his. 6 This is what we know: the person that we used to be was crucified with him in order to get rid of the corpse that had been controlled by sin. That way we wouldn’t be slaves to sin anymore, 7 because a person who has died has been freed from sin’s power. 8 But if we died with Christ, we have faith that we will also live with him. 9 We know that Christ has been raised from the dead and he will never die again. Death no longer has power over him. 10 He died to sin once and for all with his death, but he lives for God with his life. 11 In the same way, you also should consider yourselves dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus.

Unless otherwise indicated, scripture quotations are from the Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible. Used by permission.

What does it mean to be baptized not only into Christ’s death but also his resurrection?

Oscar Romero, archbishop of El Salvador, lived deeply into this mystery. At a time of sweeping injustice and shocking violence against those who worked for change, Romero listened to the cries of the poor...

O God, teach us to stand in solidarity with the poor. Amen.


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