On Sunday we will turn back time and we will find ourselves on the night of Jesus’ arrest. Jesus had just finished a last supper with his disciples. He washed their feet, gave them a new commandment, predicted Peter’s denial, foretold Judas’ betrayal, and then he told his friends that he was about to leave them.
It’s a somber night. And you can sense the tension and anxiety in the air. The disciples aren’t exactly sure what to expect. Maybe they aren’t even sure what to say. They don’t yet understand what is coming.
And so, they respond by asking questions and demanding certainty. Thomas asks Jesus for a roadmap: “How can we know the way?” Philip asks for proof: “Lord show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”
But that’s not what Jesus offers, instead he speaks the familiar words, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
Rather than certainty, Jesus offers himself.
The details of our circumstances might be different, but I think, often, we find ourselves in a similar place. The ground around us is shifting, we aren’t sure what to expect, and we long for clarity and certainty.
Like Thomas we want to know the way; we want a clearly laid out plan. Do this, and that, then you will arrive at your destination. Like Philip, we want a sign or an assurance that everything will be okay.
But that’s not what the life of faith offers. Instead, faith offers us a person. Faith offers us relationship. Faith offers us the Way.
The way isn’t what we thought it was going to be. The way might feel demanding. The way might be precarious. The way will take time.
But the promise is the Way will safely bear us home, to the place that has been prepared for us.
Grace and peace,
Kimmy
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