Welcoming the Holy
Here we invite you to take time for yourself in personal prayer. The following spiritual reflection offers words and images which we hope will evoke for you an experience of God.
By: Sister Karen Dietz
Opening Prayer
O God, grant that we love what You command and desire what You promise, that, amid the uncertainties of this world, our hearts may be fixed on You. Amen.
Reading
Luke 13: 22 – 30
Jesus passed through towns and villages, teaching as he went and making his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?”
He answered them, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough. After the master of the house has arisen and locked the door, then will you stand outside knocking and saying, ‘Lord, open the door for us.’ He will say to you in reply, ‘I do not know where you are from.’ And you will say, ‘We ate and drank in your company and you taught in our streets.’ Then he will say to you, ‘I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers!’ And there will be wailing and grinding of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God and you yourselves cast out. And people will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south and will recline at table in the kingdom of God. For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
Reflection
One of the most fundamental human desires is the desire to be known. We long for our friends, family and even colleagues at work to really know who we are. We want God to know us as well. And God, in the very act of creating, wants the same – to be known by us.
A friend of mine recently completed a long relationship with an organization in the city. She has served on several committees and at least two terms on the Board. After 18 years, she was stepping down. Of course, there was some bit of celebrating her for her generosity. I happened to be with her when she opened the gift package given to her by the Director. Instead of some of the usual stuff like an engraved plaque or paperweight, she was given a large collection of utensils she can use in her passionate endeavors in the kitchen. She was delighted to be honored in this way simply because this choice of gift showed her that she was “known.”
When Jesus says that the Master will reply: “I do not know where you are from,” I believe he means that the Master is not known by the person seeking entrance. Even though they might have eaten together and walked side by side, the person knocking had not made him or herself known.
The question for us is: “Are you known by the Master?” I believe this knowing happens when I take the time to pray. In this prayer time I thank God for the many ways I am blessed, and I tell God what is on my mind. I share my heart with God in these times and often I sense that God hears and responds. I try not to hold back. This is the clearest way to be more fully known by God. Yes, God created us and knows us, but do we sense the connection and the relationship? I encourage you to do the same.
As we continue on the journey of discipleship, let us pray for one another that we might have the courage to open ourselves to the God who made us and who loves us beyond our wildest dreams.
Closing Prayer
Praise God, for steadfast is God’s kindness toward us and the fidelity of God endures forever. Amen.
