Daily Scripture‘And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself’ (John 12.32)Daily ReflectionIn this part of John’s Gospel, Jesus’s speaks of his forthcoming death, when he will be ‘lifted up’ on the cross.Preaching on these words in Pasadena in 2005 the incomparable Archbishop Desmond Tutu said the following:‘When Jesus said these words, did he say “I will draw some - and tough luck for the others”? No. He said “When I am lifted up, I will draw all.” All! All! All! - Black, white, yellow; rich, poor; clever, not so clever; beautiful, not so beautiful. All! All! It is radical. Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden ... Gay, lesbian, so-called “straight”. All! All! All are to be held in the incredible embrace of the love that won’t let us go’.And that includes us. Revd Rosemary
Daily ScriptureHappy the one whose transgression is forgiven, and whose sin is covered.Happy the one to whom the Lord imputes no guilt, and in whose spirit there is no guile. (Psalm 32 v 1-2)Daily Reflection I think that it is very liberating to know that when we are truly sorry for the things we have done wrong, God will forgive us. Modern medicine has shown that when we suppress our sins, worries, guilt or anxiety it manifests itself in physical symptoms - sometimes not showing up for months or even years later. If we have confessed, then God has forgiven. That doesn’t mean we forget what we did wrong, but we move on and refuse to allow it to define us. But how many of us continue to carry around that guilt? It is almost as if, despite God’s forgiveness, we can’t forgive ourselves - but God does not want us to feel guilty, he loves us too much for that - so let it go - and feel liberated. Lyn Hayes ALM
Daily Scripture:The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him,the spirit of wisdom and understanding,the spirit of counsel and might,the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:2-3)Daily Reflection:Today, in the lectionary, the Church remembers Joseph of Nazareth. Joseph was the man whom God guided to marry Mary and raise Jesus, from birth to toddler, child to teenager, and on to being a young man. Joseph was a man of whom - in his culture and at that time - much was asked by God. He was also a man who fulfilled what was asked of him. These words, from the prophet Isaiah, were not written of Joseph; but in order to undertake what God asked of him, these spirits of the Lord must have been upon Joseph. May we too have at least some of these spirits in our lives, and be as faithful and obedient to God as Joseph was.Revd David
