Thursday, March 31, 2022
Fearless living
An excerpt from Isaiah 43:1-7 (NRSV)
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.)
Reflection from Terry Petit,
St. Simon’s Episcopal Church:
Does God’s promise of being with us throughout all the ups and downs of life really make a tangible difference? I remember reading these verses long ago and saying to God, “I don’t need you to be with me. I need you to do something!” What I failed to recognize at the time was that the something God was doing came about as I became still and more aware of God’s loving presence. God was doing something by shifting something in me as I experienced God with me. Instead of moving away from my fear, God was listening to my fear, inviting all of messy me into the conversation, calming me, enjoying me, hearing the story I tell myself and helping me discover what my fear was trying to tell me. Just as God always moves toward me, I could get curious and move toward my fear, welcome it, befriend it even, and invite it to have a seat at the table and speak, honoring its experience. Only then could I hear what my fear truly needed, respond to it, experience God in the midst of it and move into the spaciousness of the moment.
Stained glass window in St Simon’s Episcopal Church
For further study and prayer, the readings assigned for today are:
Psalm 126; Isaiah 43:1-7; Philippians 2:19-24
MUSIC
“Fear Not” by John Ferguson
Fear not, for I am with you;
fear not, for I am here.