Presence

Dear Lord, help me to be open to You
for this time, as I put aside the cares of the world.
Fill my thoughts with Your peace, Your love.

Freedom

Lord, guide me always
to do Your holy will,
knowing that Your strength
will carry me through.

Consciousness

To be conscious of something is to be aware of it. Dear Lord, help me to remember that You gave me life. Thank You for the gift of life. Teach me to slow down, to be still and to enjoy the pleasures created for me, to be aware of the beauty that surrounds me: the marvel of mountains, the calmness of lakes, the fragility of a flower petal. I need to remember that all these things come from You.

The Word of God

²¹After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit and declared, “Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me.” ²²The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. ²³One of his disciples—the one whom Jesus loved—was reclining close to his heart;^{, 24}Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. ²⁵So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” ²⁶Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot.^{, 27}After he received the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “Do quickly what you are going to do.” ²⁸Now no one knew why he said this to him. ²⁹Some thought that, because Judas had the common purse, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival,” or that he should give something to the poor. ³⁰So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.

³¹When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. ³²If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. ³³Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’

³⁶Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.” ³⁷Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” ³⁸Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Very truly, I tell you, before the cock crows, you will have denied me three times.

Inspiration

Here again we see the humanity of Jesus, who is troubled in spirit, knowing he was about to be betrayed. When he dipped the bread and gave it to Judas, he requested, ‘Do quickly what you are going to do’.    The deeper meaning in the parables did not always touch the hearts of the disciples. Jesus spoke in parables about his impending death, but not when, in plain language, he told Peter, ‘before the cock crows you will deny me three times.’  

Conversation

Lord, You have engraved my name
on the palm of Your hand.
Even if others forget me,
You never will.

Conclusion

I thank God for these few moments we have spent alone together and for any insights I may have been given concerning the text.

Amen