Abide — Luke 13

Podcast Transcript

Welcome to Abide. I’m so glad you have come to carve out silence for yourself; to carve out time where we gather as community; to open to the voice of God and to His work in our lives. And so, if you haven’t already, find a place to be quiet. Maybe this is the same place where you do your prayer, your journaling, your reading, your meditation. It can be helpful to have a place that you go to regularly that is set apart for times and listening and quieting.

Let’s take a nice inhale to quiet the body, and exhale out, just letting things go. And again inhale, and exhale.

There tends to be a lot of clutter in the mind and in the heart and the body, so this is a time for us to just soften, release, and just clear out some of that clutter to make room for what is most important, for what has the deepest value and that which is our greatest treasure. So, we’ll just do a gentle body scan. Begin at the top of your head and just start to relax your forehead, and your eyes – there’s nothing to see right now or read, your eyes can rest. Maybe relax your face and your cheeks can relax. Maybe a gentle smile just eases the tension in the body. When you’re relaxing those shoulders down, softening the center body and the organs, relaxing the hips and the legs, all the way down to the feet.

And sometimes I think about my body or my thoughts and it all being stiff or icy and imagining the ice shifting and melting to water, and then shifting to gas and evaporating. So, this progression, this softening of the body and the mind and all the clutter, and of the heart, making space.

And I’m going to read you a poem that I came across this week, and it’s by Gunilla Norris: “Within each of us there is a silence – a silence as vast as a universe. We are afraid of it and we long for it. When we experience that silence, we remember who we are: creatures of the stars, created from the cooling of this planet; created from dust and gas; created from the elements; created from time and space; created from silence.

In our present culture, silence is something like an endangered species, an endangered fundamental. The experience of silence is now so rare that we must cultivate it and treasure it. This is especially true for shared silence. Sharing silence is, in fact, a political act. When we can stand aside from the usual and perceive the fundamental, change begins to happen. Our lives align with deeper values and the lives of others are touched and influenced.

Silence brings us back to basics, to our senses, to ourselves. It locates us. Without that return, we can go so far away from our true natures that we end up – quite literally – beside ourselves. We lived blindly and act thoughtlessly. We endanger the delicate balance which sustains our lives, our communities, and our planet. Each of us can make a difference. Politicians and visionaries will not return us to the sacredness of life. That will be done by ordinary men and women, who, together or alone can say, “Remember to breathe. Remember to feel. Remember to care.” Let us do this for our children and ourselves and our children’s children. Let us practice for life’s sake.”

The silence is here for us to sink deeply into, and allow it to have its way in us. Many times, the language of God is silence. In today’s gratitude practice, we’re going to be more aware of our senses. So, I’m going to walk us through just an awareness of our senses and see how that can bubble up gratitude for the beauty of being alive.

And so, let’s begin with our hearing. What do you hear right now? We might hear this nice music with us, but you might hear some movement in the kitchen. You might hear some construction outside, maybe a bird singing or a dog barking- sounds of life; sounds of women and men serving their families or communities; animals bringing their songs into the world. What do you hear?

Thank you, Creator God, for our ears. Open them- open them to hear all that there is to hear.

What do you smell? Maybe in your room you’ve lit a candle and you smell that warmth, or maybe you smell someone cooking something or the smell of your clothing, a shawl, or just the air.

Thank you, God, for the ability to smell, and that it works so beautifully and harmoniously with the other senses to bring forward such a rich experience. What do you taste? Maybe you’ve already had a coffee today or a tea, or a breakfast or a snack. And you can still taste the provision of God in your mouth, now traveled into your stomach and into your body, incorporating nutrition for you to sit here and be in this moment. Taste that the Lord is good. Thank you, God, for the richness of the tongue, and the many tastes of life.

What do you feel on your skin right now? Maybe the space you’re in isn’t heated very well, and the hair on your body has to lift and create some warmth, or maybe you feel a knit sweater, or warm socks, or maybe you’re outside and you feel a breeze. Maybe you feel the support of the chair you’re in, or the bed you’re lying on. Amazing, to feel life. Thank you, God, for our ability to touch- experience the vastness of every day that you’ve given us.

What do you see? Maybe your eyes are closed now, but you know the room that you’re in and you can see in your mind’s eye, the furniture and where it’s placed. Maybe the bookshelf or the lamp, the desk. Maybe you can see the faces of the ones you love, or the beauties that you’ve seen in the last few days in your mind. Taste and see that the Lord is good.

Oh Lord, that we have eyes to experience your glories your wonders, your beauty. Open us Lord, in all these senses, in a deeper way, so that we might enter in and be in the present moment – really in the present moment – for all that it has, and for all that it is offering us. We are grateful.

And the text today is from the Gospel of Luke Chapter 13 and it’s 7 verses and I would love for you to use your senses as we’ve spent time sort of awakening them. In this story, so, as I read, what do you see? What do you hear? What you sense? Allow it to really come forward in your imagination.

“On a Sabbath, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for 18 years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. And when Jesus saw her, he called her forward and he said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.”

“Then he put his hands on her and immediately she straightened up and praised God. Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, “There are six days for work, so come and be healed on those days - not on the Sabbath.”

“The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” And when he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.” Allow me to read this passage again and- where are you in the story? There’s a crowd. There’s a woman. There’s also synagogue leaders, rulers. So, as I read this, imagine where you might be in the story.

“On a Sabbath, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and when a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for 18 years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. And when Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

“Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, “There are six days for work, so come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

“The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” And when he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.”

I wonder if you relate to the crippled woman. And as I imagine her being bent down for 18 years- what is she seeing in those 18 years? A lot of feet… A lot of the road, the dust. What has she smelled and heard and touched? And yet she makes her way on the Sabbath day into the synagogue. And Jesus sees her. He sees her and He calls her forward in the midst of her pain and her weakness, and her humility- humiliation. He calls her to come forward and He says, “Woman, you’re free from this infirmity.” He puts His hands on her. Wonder what that felt like – Jesus, putting his hands on me, and my infirmities, on the things that cripple me and bind me.

We later hear Jesus talking about this woman and how valuable she is. She’s a daughter of Abraham. And she means a lot to Jesus. This is who He came for. This is His mission, to deliver those in bondage; to see those that are cast aside, to bring them deliverance.

So, if you relate with the crippled woman, may you hear Jesus call you up, to see him closer. May you feel Him, place His hands on you and be concerned for the things that keep you bent over. May you hear Him speak that you are a daughter of Abraham, that you are connected in His family, and loved.

I’m sure many of us don’t want to relate with the ruler of the synagogue. But I wonder if you’ve studied the Bible very well and know the words of God and know the ways of doing it and how to be right - how to live out the Commandments and the rules. And when someone around you seems to be not carrying out the rules as you see them to be carried out, you’re angry.

I wonder if we, as people, have put rules on top of rules. You’ve sort of lost sight of what matters. God made the Sabbath to celebrate His deliverance of His people, not to keep them in bondage. And so, if you’re willing to admit, if we’re- if I’m willing to admit that we look around with judgment to the right and to the left, in how people live and carry out the rules, we criticize. And here Jesus steps back, and of course, brings forth compassion, love and we’re humiliated by how bound we’ve been to our own rules that we’ve made up on top of rules.

And so, Lord, we humble ourselves, if we find ourselves in this space today, casting judgment, just thinking we know it all and others should do better and be better and think like us. Oh Lord, soften us to see the crowd of people; to see those that are hurting; to realize that they are sons and daughters of Abraham.

And maybe you relate to Jesus, just being in the middle of a lot of action in life. Inside, Jesus must be seeking wisdom and how to continue to carry out His mission, despite opposition. The mission of compassion, of deliverance, of love. So maybe you find yourself standing in the midst of a lot needs and thoughts and words and ways of being, and you need Christ’s eyes and discernment and truth to rise up and to help you partner in the mission of salvation and of deliverance of His people.

Allow me to read the passage of final time. And as we imagine it with our senses – and you might imagine being one of the characters – may we allow this living word to rest on our minds, on our hearts, on our bodies. And may it unbind us- may it release us into a deeper connection with our Saviour.

“On a Sabbath, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and when a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for 18 years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. And when Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

“Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, “There are six days for work, so come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

“The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” And when he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.”

Jesus, we are delighted with all the wonderful things you are doing, many of which we do not fully understand. Jesus, place your hands on our bodies and minds and hearts for healing. Spirit, touch those places where we need our thoughts to be looked over and the way in which we speak and assess and judge. Would you help align our values and rules and ways of being into your compassionate, loving mission.

So, we close this time of prayer saying, “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Spirit, as it was in the beginning, as it is now, and as it ever shall be, world without end.” Go in peace my friends, to hear, to feel, to see, to smell and to taste and know He is good.

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