Ordinary Time 
Pause
Take a deep breath right now.
Notice one thing you see,
one thing you hear,
one thing your body is touching.
You are here in this place. God is here with you, too.
Listen
Shout loudly; don’t hold back; raise your voice like a trumpet! Announce to my people their crime, to the house of Jacob their sins. They seek me day after day, desiring knowledge of my ways like a nation that acted righteously, that didn’t abandon their God. They ask me for righteous judgments, wanting to be close to God. “Why do we fast and you don’t see; why afflict ourselves and you don’t notice?” Yet on your fast day you do whatever you want, and oppress all your workers. You quarrel and brawl, and then you fast; you hit each other violently with your fists. You shouldn’t fast as you are doing today if you want to make your voice heard on high. Is this the kind of fast I choose, a day of self-affliction, of bending one’s head like a reed and of lying down in mourning clothing and ashes? Is this what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the Lord?
Isaiah 58:1-5
Think
Ooof. Today’s text is a brutal message from God. God is angry and asking, “Is this what you call a fast? Is this acceptable to the Lord?” God’s people are being hypocritical because their outward piety is only a cover for evil deeds, here described as oppressing workers, fighting, and abandoning God. They say they’re fasting and asking God for knowledge and closeness, yet they are actively hurting others.
The words of the prophet Isaiah offer a timeless warning for us, as well. The challenge is to see where our spirituality does not align with our actions. Are we fasting, yet oppressing people? Are we going to worship in God’s house, but also hurting others? Are we praying and calling upon the name of God, but only as a mascot for our brand of politics? Or are we truly seeking peace and actively engaging in justice? Our actions will reveal the true nature of our hearts.
Erin Spengeman Hutchison
Pray
Wise God, challenge me today to truly seek peace and engage in justice, remembering that not doing so is opposite of the Way of God.
Amen.
Go
As you go today, remember that God is ready to share wisdom.
Reach out your hands and accept it.
