Listen

He rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the synagogue assistant, and sat down. Every eye in the synagogue was fixed on him. He began to explain to them, “Today, this scripture has been fulfilled just as you heard it.”

Luke 4:20-21

Think

Have you ever been greeted by someone older than you with words like, “You have grown so much since the last time I saw you!”? As I have grown older, I’ve realized that people say phrases like this as much for themselves as for the ones to whom they say it. People who say these types of phrases to us recognize that we are no longer small children but are growing up into adulthood. I’d like to imagine this is what the people in the synagogue thought of Jesus as he came to read the words of the prophet Isaiah. The people in the synagogue, some who may have known him when he was a boy, were amazed by the giftedness that Jesus demonstrated.

The words that Jesus spoke inspired and amazed those who heard him. No matter how old or experienced we are, we are all called to be a part of the body of Christ by being an example of Christ to those around us. What are ways you can inspire the community around you?

Milligan Burroughs

Pray

God of Inspiration,

Inspire me to seek the needs of the community around me above my own desires.

Help me to acknowledge that when I am fighting for justice, I am following in your footsteps.

Allow my mind to stand firm in your love as I boldly take on your call to action in my life.

Amen.

Go

We are one in the Spirit;
we are one in the Lord.
And we pray that all unity
may one day be restored.
And they’ll know we are Christians
by our love, by our love.
Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love!

from “They’ll Know We Are Christians” by Peter Scholtes (1966)