Greetings!
Thank you for joining us in prayer and reflection during the season of Lent. We will travel through daily scripture, reflection and prayer. We invite you to explore the other resources of the season found and the bottom of the page as we begin the journey together.
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On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, 'They have no wine.' And Jesus said to her, 'Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.' His mother said to the servants, 'Do whatever he tells you.' Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, 'Fill the jars with water.' And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, 'Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.' So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, 'Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.' Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; and they remained there for a few days.
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There is a reason that Jesus is often referred to as a bridegroom, with the church the bride. Weddings are festive occasions - celebrations of a union of love. We come together each week to be nourished at the table with the body and blood of Christ. Our Eucharist is The Great Thanksgiving - it is a celebration of the joy of our life in Christ - the overwhelming gift of God's grace!
So, if we are a faith filled and overflowing with joy - why is it that today so many churches don't feel that way? Perhaps it is because we have forgotten who we are. We are not a people called to build up walls, but to break them down. We are not a people called to stay in one place, but to step boldly into the unknown. We are not a people called to close our hearts, but to offer up ourselves openly, giving all that we have and more.
New life and faith is the gift we are given by God in Christ. We are the empty vessels, employed by God to be filled with the Spirit in the waters of baptism, and to serve everyone. To lift up our hearts to such a degree that all whom we encounter are affected - opened up, joyful and alive - celebrating the union of God and all of creation in Christ. It is hospitality to the extreme, and it is what we are a part of, and what we are called to do.
In the example he set at Cana, Christ invites us to live joyfully, to dance, to revel in the overflowing grace that is ours as God's beloved children, and to bring that love out into the emptiness of the world. Will you accept the invitation?
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Prayer
Most Gracious God, help us to open our hearts
to your overwhelming love
that we may go out into this broken world and live joyfully,
give generously, and love unconditionally,
with the grace of Christ,
and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Amen
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