Devotion
Ephphatha
Frances Taylor
Be opened! This word – ephphatha – is a part of the Baptismal rite. In it, we pray that the ears of the child will be open to the word of God. How can all of this be achieved if our ears are not open to listen? To whom and what do we listen? Do we listen to the Gospel so that we can follow Jesus? Do we listen to our children so that we know what is going on in their worlds? Do we listen to the voices of the poor, the unemployed, the vulnerable, so that we can find ways to help them? Or do we listen to the voice that tells us that our needs are the most important, that we know best how to live our lives, that we survived our childhoods, so our children will just have to make the best of theirs? Just as we need eyes that are open to the world around us, we need ears that are open as well. It must be difficult for people who were either born deaf, or whose hearing was lost from accident, illness or age, but it is said that when one sense fails, another becomes more acute. The man in today's Gospel was brought to Jesus by his friends who knew that Jesus was the answer. Once his ears were opened and his tongue freed from its impediment, he and his friends could not be stopped from praising God.
Prayer
Dear Lord, may we who are blessed to have eyes to see and ears to hear also open our lips in praise to our God. Amen.
Devotion
Allowing The Scriptures
To bring Joy To My Life
Frances Taylor
The beginning of Luke's Gospel has always been one of my favorite readings. It makes me feel confident that I can believe what I have been taught. It also gives me peace because I know that God's promise has been fulfilled. We have been set free from fear. Of course, we will know fear of the unknown in this unpredictable world, but not fear of death because we can be sure that death is not the end, only the beginning of a new life. Otherwise, how could we continue to experience happiness and joy in the face of suffering? This freedom of fear, this belief in the good news – this Gospel message – is what made the early Christians so willing to face suffering in the name of Jesus. It is what motivated them to spread the good news to anyone who would listen. Is our world any less in need of the Gospel than theirs? I doubt it. Considering how we work so hard to be happy! How hard we work to avoid pain or suffering! So ...
Morning Prayer
And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead?
Inspiration
Many wish to go to a multitude of other sources to find direction in life, especially in times of trouble. In Isaiah's day, many turned to wizards and those involved in the occult, and many still do today. But God's people should reject these methods and turn "to the Law and to the testimony. " (verse 20)
Prayer
We dare not trust the world of darkness, but we put our trust in you alone, O Lord, as our source of wisdom for life. We know that Satan himself appears like an angel of light to better deceive many, and that false religions are full of doctrines of devils and sacrifices to devils, though the participants mostly are unaware of it. Only in your Word do we find the true light that will guide us through even the most trying of times. Amen.
