Wednesday, April 5, 2023 - Holy Week
/Wednesday in Holy Week
Isaiah 50:4-9a; Psalm 7; Hebrews 12:1-3; John 13:21-32
The Rev. Jeff Bohhanski
So, after receiving the piece of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.
As I hear this evening’s Gospel, I imagine the room where Jesus and his disciples were was filled with bright warm happy light. Outside it wasn’t. It was night. It was dark. It was the world.
I find the sentence: “It was night.” thought provoking. I notice in John’s Gospel, where Jesus is, there is light. Where Jesus isn’t, it’s dark. This makes me think about times when I find myself out in the dark, either by choice or by circumstance.
For instance, I feel I’m in the dark when I begin to worry about getting to the bottom of a long “To Do List”, or when I begin to think I don’t measure up, or when I begin to feel I have absolutely no control over the world around me.
I also feel I’m in the dark when I’ve been cut off in traffic or when someone has been rude to me at work or at a store.
Esther de Waal says, “Without the still center, the journey whether inner or outer is impossible.” This evening I want to lead us through a meditation I find helpful when I’m journeying through the dark.
This meditation is based on Psalm 27, verse 1. First, I will ring the bell and read the verse. Then I will allow for two minutes of silence. I will ring the bell again and read a smaller part of the verse. I will repeat the process two more times and then conclude the meditation with a prayer. Let’s begin.
I invite you to close your eyes. Take a deep breath in through your mouth, hold it, now breathe it out through your nose. One more time, in through your mouth and out through your nose. Feel the seat you are in and relax your shoulders. Take another deep breath in and out.
Psalm 27:1
The LORD is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:1
The LORD is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life
Psalm 27:1
The LORD is my light and my salvation.
Psalm 27:1
The LORD is my light.
Lord, God, we thank you for always being a light in the dark places of the world and in the dark places of our lives. May your light and love blaze in all your creation and in all the world. Amen.