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, 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

At this moment, Lord, I turn my thoughts to You.
I will leave aside my chores and preoccupations.
I will take rest and refreshment in Your presence.

The Word of God

³⁸Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to him, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” ³⁹But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. ⁴⁰For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth. ⁴¹The people of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the proclamation of Jonah, and indeed something greater than Jonah is here! ⁴²The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and indeed something greater than Solomon is here!

Inspiration

The more advanced we become, the more difficult it is to distinguish between right and wrong. Everything seems complicated, and we have a tendency to rummage for answers from outside rather than taking time out to look inwards with you and towards you. Hold our hands, Lord, as we try to hack through the undergrowth and find some wholesome ways forward.

Conversation

Lord, help me to become quiet and calm enough to hear Your still, small voice. Help me to trust what I hear. Your Word brings comfort, consolation and encouragement. Everything else I let go of.

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