Friday 29th May | Margaret Proud
Readings
Reflection
In Psalm 28 we read of David praying to God when he is surrounded by trouble and wickedness – his plea is for God to hear him. The psalm progresses with David being confident that God does hear him (just as He hears us today!) and David turns this to praise. May our hearts leap with joy (v6) as we connect with God through prayer and praise and amidst struggles know that God is our strength.
David has again called to God in Psalm 30 - for His help and healing and he praises God for what he has experienced of God’s power. There are 2 outbursts of praise where David both encourages us to praise God (v4 & 5) and does that himself (v11 & 12). However between these verses of praise David is dismayed when things do not go his way. Let us remember that whatever is going on, God is trustworthy, we are to have faith, to praise and trust Him.
In the passage from Luke, both Jairus and the woman had faith, but perhaps Jesus wanted to grow that in them. The man’s faith being strengthened as he waited on the interruption from the woman and then again as he faced what seemed to be the end of his hope. The woman’s faith was bold in her actions, but she also needed to be bold in her witness to others. Could this be a time when Jesus wants us to grow in faith as well?
The twentieth century theologian Karl Barth described the time we are currently in - between Ascension and Pentecost - as a 'significant pause' between the mighty acts of God, a pause in which the Church is invited to wait and pray for the coming of the Spirit.
So let us use this time to wait and pray – for a deepening of our relationship with Jesus, for a boldness to speak of Him and an outpouring of the Holy Spirit in these days.
Prayers
Help us Lord to praise you, to wait on you and to pray in these days.
May we be expectant as we approach Pentecost - that our love for you and our trust in you will deepen, that we will be bolder in our witness, and that in this time of panic, fear and grief across our world, countless folk will turn to you as we pray ‘come Holy Spirit come’.
Amen.
Collect
O God the King of glory,
You have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ
With great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
We beseech you, leave us not comfortless,
But send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us
And exalt us to the place where our
Saviour Christ has gone before,
Who is alive and reigns with you,
In the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God, now and for ever.
Amen.
