March 22, 2011
Rev. Heather Reilly
John 4:43-54
I enjoy imagining Jesus and the disciples at regular life events. I love the story of Jesus turning water to wine at this wedding. The bride must have been thrilled when she heard how Jesus saved her wedding day. I imagine Jesus being the “life of the party” in some ways, including everyone at the event in conversation, being relational, focusing on the bride and groom, and enjoying himself and the people around him at this celebration. Jesus calls us to celebrate life events and fully enjoy life events like weddings, babies being born, graduations, baptisms, dedications, birthdays, and so much more!
I also love the stories of Jesus doing miracles from a distance. In this passage Jesus tells the dad his son will be healed. The man returns to see the miracle of his son alive. Jesus did a miracle immediately in this father and son, without “being in the room” to heal the child. What pure joy this father must have discovered. Jesus continues to perform miracles in our lives from a distance. Christ works upon us and then works for us. God does miracles to encourage our faith. For this father, this healing miracle brought his family salvation. This father believed the word of Christ, with reference to this particular occasion; but now he believed in Christ as the Messiah promised, and became one of his disciples.
C.S. Lewis describes God as being incognito. We may not “visually” see God at work regularly, doing miracles like turning water into wine at weddings, but his spirit is present and powerful. God is healing people from a distance, from within themselves in ways only God heals. “We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God. The world is crowded with him. He walks everywhere incognito. And the incognito is not always hard to penetrate. The real labour is to remember, to attend. In fact, to come awake. Still more, to remain awake” (Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer, by C.S. Lewis). A great challenge for us to remain awake, looking for and acknowledging the miracles taking place.
Father God, during this Lenten season, help me to take real joy in partnering with God to reveal his true presence to the world around us. Amen.
