For this reason

John 12:27-32
Jesus Speaks about His Death
“Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”

Lord, you knew strength of purpose

A purpose from which

you refused to waver

even when confronted

with all manner of temptation

and in the face of death itself.

You knew the things

that were yours to do.

May we, in these days of confusion

know your purpose

your will for our lives.

May we discern

what is ours to do

and glorify you

by getting on with the tasks

that you reveal

are ours

for this day

and this hour.

And, amidst all the competing voices

that call us in so many directions

may we hear clearly

and unequivocally

the voice from heaven

that assures us 

that you have got this

- that you are God

and we are not

and your call to us today

is to stand firm

to be still and listen

and to follow

wherever you lead

bringing glory

to your Name.

For loves sake.

A clearance

Matthew 21:12-16
Jesus Cleanses the Temple
Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.
He said to them, “It is written,
‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;
but you are making it a den of robbers.”
The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he cured them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the amazing things that he did, and heard the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became angry
and said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,
‘Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise for yourself’?”

What of us today

who have been driven out 

of our sanctuaries?

What has become, for us,

in these days

our place of prayer?

Where are we hearing

voices raised to God

in praise

in anguish

in pleading?

How are we responding 

to those who cry out

to God?

Where are we practising

the things that we preach

in our temples?

How are we making space

to listen for wisdom

in the voices of children?

And where are we seeing

the clearing out

of all that hinders

our turning to God

to lead us through 

this time of trial?

Sifting through the carnage

for something to hold on to

what will we find?

What, in the end,

will lead us into life?

Another kind of hand washing

Matthew 27:24-26
Pilate Hands Jesus over to Be Crucified
So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.

How often do I convince myself

that I’ve taken the only available option?

How often do I justify my actions

by defining it as the least of evils?

How often is the self righteousness

I tell myself has been hard won

actually achieved

at considerable cost to another?

It is extremely possible

perhaps even probable

that there is a bit of Pilate

in all of us.

In every decision postponed

In every courageous conversation avoided

In every truth diluted

or silenced.

Hand washing

though vital for physical health

in these times

may not be so helpful 

for peace of mind.

I am not an innocent bystander

but a culpable participant

more often than I care to be.

And it will take more than hand washing

to change that.

Staying faithful

Mark 14:32-36

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane

They went to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be distressed and agitated. And he said to them, “I am deeply grieved, even to death; remain here, and keep awake.” And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. He said, “Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want.”

Being faithful

is exhausting

Weighing up the cost 

of commitment

and change

when loss seems 

more prevalent than gain

Balancing the books

of uncertainty and agitation

with tentative peace

Not much of a relief

but  some kind of resolution

around which

life can begin to flow 

Like a sandbank in a river

Still there

but navigable

But the energy it takes

just to get that far

never mind what’s next

necessitates withdrawal

lying low

taking time

to reclaim 

all that has been eroded

in the struggle 

to be faithful

and to remain available

to possibility.

Healing

may creep in slowly

not to anaesthetise the pain

but to massage and soothe

so that tenderness

openness

and sensitivity

remain the foundation

of future growth

and continued faithfulness.

Forty

Matthew 4:1-2
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.

Forty

Days of fasting for Jesus

Years in the wilderness

for the Israelites

Days of rain

for Noah and co 
Days of prophesying
for Jonah in Nineveh...
Days originally set apart
for those in quarantine
Times of healing and growth
Times of creativity and innovation
Times of learning and consolidation 
In this “Lentiest Lent that’s ever been Lented”
where have we borne witness to
and where have we contributed to
Healing
Growth
Creativity
Innovation
Learning
Consolidation
And how might we emerge
into the light
forever changed
and renewed
by our experience?
For the love of God.

This is faith

Habakkuk 3:17-19
Though the fig tree does not blossom,
and no fruit is on the vines;
though the produce of the olive fails,
and the fields yield no food;
though the flock is cut off from the fold,
and there is no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
I will exult in the God of my salvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
and makes me tread upon the heights.

This is faith:

To look around

and see light in the darkness

To listen carefully 

for sounds of laughter in the tears

To keep watch

for signs of hope amidst despair

To sit with grief

knowing resurrection is promised

We may not be able

to access the empty tomb 

But we know how the story ends

So

Even when...

We can’t see the woods

for the trees

The clouds obscure the sun

We can’t see God

through the mist of confusion

we can’t hear God

for the cacophony around

This I know

God is present

in the midst of deafening silence

God is present 

and emerging from the darkness

God is present

when everything else conspires

to convince us otherwise

God is present

And that is enough.

Rent a crowd

Matthew 21:6-11
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, “Who is this?” The crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.”

This is the time

to work out

who we are

without a crowd.

We, who are so fickle 

often drawn in by popular opinion

often dragged along for the ride

have a unique opportunity

to question

who we are

and what we believe.

In our enforced isolation

will we still cry out

Hosanna!

Lord save us!

And will religious leaders today

have any more clue

about the needs of the people?

Or will we keep on colluding

with political forces

that go with the flow

to save the economy?

This Palm Sunday

away from the crowd,

whose name is on your lips

and whose creed

is written on your heart?

Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna!