Thoughts for the Day

At that same hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

As you get older certain people stay in the memory, often because of their character. I find the negative ones disappear, but the positive ones shine brightly. I have two in mind today, one was an 'enabler' - a Vicar who, while not sure about women clergy, nevertheless encouraged me to try my wings as a Deaconess in the 1980s and in doing so taught me a lot; and the other was a 'thanker' - an RAF Padre in the 1960s who expressed appreciation for every thing done at church each week, whether it was making coffee, singing in the choir, or anything in between. He never forgot to express appreciation.

In our reading today the 70 disciples have returned from taking the Gospel to the surrounding villages, to preach, teach and heal, and their excitement leads Jesus to turn to God. First, he rejoices in the work of the Holy Spirit, someone whom we can all too often 'put on the back burner', though it's the Holy Spirit that is the power of God and it was the Holy Spirit who would enable the disciples to carry out God's work.

But, secondly, as well as rejoicing in the work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus also thanks God for the great plan that will allow these 'infant' disciples to see him as the Messiah, the Son of God and who in due course will take this message to the whole world.

The question for today is, how often do we enable others to work for Christ, and how often do we thank others for their efforts?

Lord Jesus Christ,
may we consciously encourage others
in their work for You
so that from small shoots
healthy results will occur.
May we not be critical,
but positively applaud their efforts,
and help them in any way that we can.
May we also remember to thank
all who offer service to Your church,
in whatever way that is,
and appreciate all that they do.
Amen.