Presence

“But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret”. (Matthew 6:6) God, You are my secret place, always dwelling within me, and I in You. May I put time aside each day to enter the inner room of my heart, in order to be with You.

Freedom

Lord, You created me to live in freedom.
Mostly I take this gift for granted.
Inspire me to live in the freedom You intended,
with a heart untroubled and with complete trust in You.

Consciousness

In the presence of my loving Creator, I look honestly at my feelings over the last day: the highs, the lows and the level ground. Can I see where the Lord has been present?

The Word of God

¹Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. ²So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”

¹¹But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb, ¹²and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. ¹³They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” ¹⁴When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. ¹⁵Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” ¹⁶Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). ¹⁷Jesus said to her, “Do not touch me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” ¹⁸Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Inspiration

Jesus calls Mary by her name, and she instantly recognises his voice. He had said that his own sheep recognised the voice of the shepherd and followed him. Can I now have this same Lord call me by my name as he invites me to spend some precious time with him? 

Jesus says to her, ‘Do not cling to me. I have not yet gone up to my Father.’ There is an implication that when he does return to his Father, then we can cling to him in faith. In Psalm 62, we read, ‘My soul clings to you. Your right hand holds me fast.’ The psalms are the ready-made heart prayers of the people of God. Let us make use of them in our prayers. 

Conversation

What word or phrase has caught my attention from today’s Gospel? I ask the Lord what He wants to say to me through this word…

Conclusion

I thank God for His gift of love
as I go forth with joy and hope
to serve His people.

Amen