Famous Last Words

Reflection on John 16: 1-15

by Mike Hayes

“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you.

“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me;concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he willguide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”

A quick search of “famous last words” shows that most last words that get memorialized are quite sad. Shouldn’t last words should be more weighty, more meaningful? This past spring I read a popular book entitled “The Last Lecture” by Randy Pausch” Pausch was a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon. Many professors give a talk called "The Last Lecture" where they consider the end of their career and reflect on what is most important to them. And while they talk, you can't help but consider the same question: What would we impart if we knew it was our last chance? What would we want as our legacy? Randy Pausch was a young professor and father of three children who was dying of terminal cancer. His last lecture was poignant as he shared important life lessons with his children, his students and us. It was a book well worth reading.

John 16 is part of the teaching Jesus shared with his apostles at the last Supper. If you were sitting down with your followers and sharing your “Last Lecture” before everything in the world came unhinged and you were going to be crucified, you would choose your words carefully. Jesus did, and John 16 is part of his legacy to us.

Over and over in his last lecture, Jesus tells us that that he is going away, but he is not leaving us alone. He will send us the Holy Spirit. Like David Pausch, his words are meant to provide comfort and instruction.  Unlike Dr. Pausch, Jesus was able to promise that the presence and power of God would continue in the person of the Holy Spirit. I was struck by the word Jesus chose to describe the coming Holy Spirit. In John and elsewhere in this last discourse he describes the Holy Spirit as the Paraclete. Paraclete is a transliterated word from the Greek text that is recorded variously in John 14, 15 and 16 as Comforter, Counselor, and Advocate. Jesus wants his followers to know that the one he is sending to be with them in his absence, his legacy, is a person mysteriously and intimately part of the triune God, who will provide just what they need.

In verse 7 Jesus says it is to our advantage that he goes away because of he did not go Advocate would not come. The Advocate, the very presence of God intercedes on our behalf, understands our struggles, comforts and helps us, reminds us of our new identity in Christ, a gives us hope.

In the church world we have a word for the “Last Word.” It is "Benediction," Latin for last word. A benediction is God’s last word about us. Weekly at Oakland City Church we are reminded that God our Advocate’s last word for us is this, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23, 24).

Tomorrow’s reading: Romans 8:1-11

Walking With The Spirit

Reflection on John 14:25-31

by Iana Diesto

These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, forthe ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here. 

Whenever my one-year-old nephew falls or gets knocked down, his immediate reaction is to cry.  However, there’s a three-second window, in between the fall and the tears, when he looks at me for help. In that moment, I can help him respond differently: I pretend it wasn’t a big deal, or I can rush to his aid and coddle him. If I choose the former, he simply gets up again and continues on.  If I run to him and worriedly pick him up, he starts crying. More often than not, when I show my nephew how I respond, he responds likewise.

I see a similar situation happening with Jesus and his disciples at the end of John 14.  Up until this point, Jesus was saying that he would be leaving them. His crucifixion is about to take place, and He only has a few moments left.

As for the disciples, the person they had built their lives around – whom they had left everything for and in whom they had entrusted their futures – was about to leave them! How would you feel if person or the things you had sacrificed a lot for were gone? Or if your ideas of your future weren’t panning out the way you wanted?

I would feel incredibly frightened and frustrated.  I’d probably cry harder than my nephew. Sensing this is how his disciples would also react, Jesus takes those few moments He has and offers a different way to respond: with the Holy Spirit.

First, He offers the Holy Spirit as a “Helper.” If translated, this means various things: counselor, advocate, and intercessor are a few. When the disciples are faced with an unknown future, the Spirit will give them advice. When they feel like they are unable to speak for themselves, the Holy Spirit will be there to stand in the gap for them. Not only that, but the Spirit will continue to do the things Jesus was doing with them. What comforting news that must be!

Second, Jesus also offers His unique peace. Worldly peace is temporary; it depends on things that may not last (like their jobs, house, or the wellbeing of their families). In contrast, Jesus’ peace lasts forever. Their souls can be at rest no matter what is going on around them, because His peace is within them. It is a peace that covers all of their past and present troubles, and it shields them from fearing their future.

Lastly, Jesus offers joy. In a little while, He’ll be gone and the disciples are unsure when He will return. Instead of fearing this potentially difficult circumstance, Jesus calls for rejoicing.  Somehow, Jesus’ leaving will be better for Jesus, and therefore better for His disciples. Jesus calls them to rejoice in their current hard situation because of what it will mean in the future.

We all deal with difficult situations. There are times when I am stuck and don’t know what to do next. There are people in our community who feel trapped where they are and no one will listen to their voice. In those situations, rejoicing does not seem natural.  Crying, arguing, and making excuses seem more natural. But how would I live differently if I knew there was a Helper who gave me direction when I felt lost in life? Which voices we would hear if we listened to the Spirit interceding on behalf of the voiceless in Oakland? Knowing that there was a peace in the Holy Spirit that the world could not take away, which circumstances is God calling you to rejoice in?

Tomorrow’s reading: John 16:1-15

Am I Grounded?

Reflection on Ezekiel 36:22-36
by Maggie Crosby

[22] “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. [23] And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. [24] I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. [25] I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 

[26] And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. [27] And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. [28] You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. [29] And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. And I will summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you. [30] I will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations. [31] Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominations. [32] It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel. 

[33] “Thus says the Lord GOD: On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be rebuilt. [34] And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by. [35] And they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden, and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’ [36] Then the nations that are left all around you shall know that I am the LORD; I have rebuilt the ruined places and replanted that which was desolate. I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it.

Whenever I hear the pastor say, “please turn your bibles to the Old Testament,” I feel a twinge of anxiety.  Uh oh, I think, what have we done wrong?

As I began reading this passage in Ezekiel, I felt the same panic I used to feel when one of my parents would shout “Maggie Colleen Crosby!”  The full name meant I was in trouble.  Can you relate?  I’d start racking my brain, compiling a list of my most recent transgressions, “1) I told the neighbor kid the truth about Santa, 2) I lied about brushing my teeth last night, 3) I read my sister’s diary…” Which one had they discovered?  After the stern “We’re very disappointed with you” talk with my parents, I would invariably be sent to my room to think about what I’d done.

I tend to personify the God of the Old Testament in that light, as the angry parent who is waiting to send me to my room.

For the first few verses, it’s sounding like this will be the case – that God will lecture the people of Israel for their wrongdoings (How many times do you need to say “profaned”?  We get it, we messed up…) and then “send them to their room” so to speak.

But then God surprised me.  When will I stop being surprised by His surprises?  He promises to vindicate the people, to gather them and cleanse them.

He doesn’t make them do chores to work off their wrongdoings – HE vindicates THEM.  HE gives to THEM a new heart and a new spirit.

He doesn’t send them away to think about what they’ve done – He GATHERS them.  I like that word, “gather.”  It sounds like something you do to wildflowers, to gather them into a bouquet.  Or to friends, to gather them for a nice dinner party.  It doesn’t sound like the verb of an angry parent.

The people of Israel have strayed from the Lord, they have become distracted by idols and things of this world.  But He doesn’t ask them to pack their bags and return to him – He will do the work, he will gather them, renew them and provide for them in spite of their transgressions.

He says something interesting here; He says that it is, “not for your sake that I will act.”  I think that what He means is that he would do the same thing for any of his people.  He reminds them that they have done wrong, and tells them that they should be “confounded” by their sins, because they are so far off from what He hopes for them.  His motives aren’t to shame and fix this one particular group, but instead to make the world right for everyone, to restore it to the way he designed and created it.

In verses 33-36 God shows off a bit.  Repeatedly throughout the Bible, He has said and shown that he can do great things, that he will repair all that we ruin and restore what we break.  He can turn our desolate lands into the Garden of Eden, the ultimate creation that we ruined.

Tomorrow's reading: John 14:15-21

The Spirit of New Life

Reflections on Acts 2:1-18

1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. 

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 

12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” 

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 

17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

This week, we are starting a series of readings on the Holy Spirit. There is great confusion and ambivalence over the person and role of the Holy Spirit. Very often He is referred to as an 'it'. The Holy Spirit is not a man, but He is certainly not an It! We also wonder at the role of the Holy Spirit. Some of us may feel that the Holy Spirit is exotic or unruly - only leading to charismatic outbursts or divisive fringe activities.

If we feel doubt and ambivalence over the Holy Spirit, we are likely to forget the power and wonder of the third person of the Trinity. That's a tragedy. The Holy Spirit is God In Us, the promise of Jesus to be with us, always.

In this passage, we see the Holy Spirit at Pentecost - the birthday of the church. Note what the Holy Spirit does:

1. The Spirit gives confidence to the frightened disciples.
2. The Spirit teaches the disciples to speak the heart language of the people. This is not mystical speaking in tongues, but a miraculous sign that God is committed to the unity of God's people.
3. The Spirit enables Peter to preach the first good news. The Spirit of truth is all about the message of Jesus. Everything the Spirit does is aimed at pointing people to Him.

What questions do you have about the Holy Spirit? Ask God for a new understanding of God's Spirit in you.

And here's a treat for the bold...www.adventuresoftheholyghost.tumblr.com/

The Call with Spotty Reception

Reflection on 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."

When your phone call starts to break up, the first thing you do is look down at your phone to confirm. "I have four bars. It must be on your end." We say it with a slightly reproachful tone. "Come on," we think to ourselves. "Get it together." Perhaps if we are honest, we feel the same way about God. When the call is unclear, we are sure we have four bars. God must be in a dead spot. Or maybe God has a old flip phone. Typical God. So resistant to new technology.

But have you ever lived in a house with bad reception? You live in a dead spot for your  carrier. You know that when the call breaks up, its your fault. You have the one bar. You know it. And the person on the other end says - "I have four bars. It must be on your end." Oh the shame.

As we have read through the call stories of God in the Scriptures, the constant theme has been bad reception. We have seen that God calls in so many different ways. But in every case, the listener to the call has one bar. Abraham, Moses, David, Jeremiah, Job, Paul all get the signal scrambled (Mary actually does this one pretty well.) They doubt God. They doubt themselves. They doubt the plan. And, if we are honest, when we look at our response, the reception is pretty bad as well.

That's why I love this paragraph from Paul. It reminds me that bad reception is not surprising to God. God's call only goes out to the places with bad reception. God is not calling those in the best location or with the best location. God is calling people who don't get it. God is calling people who aren't impressive. God is calling people who are 'low and despised'.

You may not understand God's call yet. You may be fearful. You may doubt. But that doesn't change the transmission. God is committed to calling you - our of fear, doubt, anxiety - and into purpose and life.

And when the call totally dropped out, and we were tempted to throw the phone against the wall, God did what all good friends do. He yelled into the dying phone, 'I'm coming over.' And that's what he did. The author of Hebrews says it best:

"Long ago, at many times and in various ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days, he has spoken to us through a Son..." (Hebrews 1:1)

Let us boast in and focus on, not the quality of our reception, but the goodness of the one who calls.

Monday's Reading: Acts 2:1-18

When Calling Clashes

Reflection on Acts 26:2-23
by Ginny Prince

“I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today against all the accusations of the Jews, especially because you are familiar with all the customs and controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

“My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee. And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?

“I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities.

“In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

“Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus,then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent andturn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”

Some of us have really clear moments of meeting the Trinity for the first time, others of us may not be so sure. All followers of Christ have a trajectory of moments where we encounter the risen Lord and make choices to move towards God or away from God’s character and work. And all of us have some reflective work to do.

Agrippa ruled in Palestine for the Romans yet was sympathetic to the Jewish people and had a Greek education so he was the right man to hear Paul’s case. Paul knows his background and uses everything in his power to his defense -- from using Jewish language around theophany (a moment of revelation from God) in verses 13-14 (falling down, hearing the voice of God in Aramaic, etc.), referring back to the "calling" stories of the prophets (Jeremiah 1, Isaiah 42) to the Greek saying about “kicking against the goads” in verse 14.  His overall goal is to convince Agrippa that both the faith Paul represents and his story are consistent with the Jewish faith which was tolerated by the Romans (verse 23).  Paul has really thought through how to tell his story to men like Agrippa and Festus. 

Paul is certain of Jesus’ work in him, giving him a new identity: as one who was clearly seen by Jesus himself (verse 15); as a servant (verse 16); as a witness of God’s work past and future (verse 16); as one to be sent to a new people group (verse 17); as one who endures suffering but with a promise of protection from God (verse 17). 

What are the new identity labels God is inviting me to use in reference to myself? How am I being changed by past and current or future encounters with the risen Lord? Where are Father, Son, and Holy Spirit sending me to and for what Godly purpose? And how do I articulate these things to people who may or may not understand my cultural context?

This loaded image of the icon Synaspismos is what I hope we can become as we reflect on what God’s call to us is, how to articulate calling to many, and live out this call in Oakland. The icon depicts the Apostles/Saints Paul and Peter in an embrace.  Peter, a Jewish man called to bring the Gospel to the Jews, and Paul, a persecutor of the Jews called to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles. It is an image of the joining and clashing of two calling stories played out. As Andy Crouch says in his book Playing God: “So the Synaspismos icon has become for me a picture of fellowship, partnership and community, and also of difference, distance and difficulty.  Ultimately they are all part of the same thing.  It is perhaps the best portrayal I have seen of the reality that love is as much an act of the will as an impulse of the heart.  In the Synaspismos we witness two strong leaders willing to submit to one another -– to embrace the gifts the other brings and to join together, shields overlapping, in a shared mission.”

Tomorrow's reading: 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Questioning the Angel

Reflection on Luke 1:26-38
by Liz Lin

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Make no mistake:  I am a planner, and I love my plans.  I thrive on knowing where I need to be and when.  My Google Calendar is meticulously tended to and color-coded.  Deviations from these plans – unexpected interruptions, last-minute changes from other people – bring irritation at minimum and disproportionate anger at maximum.  My plans give me a sense of control over my surroundings; they make me feel like the world is orderly and manageable.

So when I read this exchange between Mary – who is a teenager, mind you – and an angel from heaven, I’m simultaneously comforted and challenged.

First, I’m comforted because Mary is initially “greatly troubled” by this angelic intrusion into her life.  Though Gabriel’s greeting is kind and in no way threatening, this disruption is unusual, to say the least, and her first response is one of appropriate… concern.  Alarm, really.  And that’s me!  That’s how I feel when I’m interrupted, when things pop up unexpectedly.  (Not that I’ve ever been interrupted by an angel.  But if I were ever to be, that’s exactly how I would respond.)

I’m also reassured because Mary’s second response is to question the angel.  She’s not sure about this whole thing.  This also feels appropriate, because what the angel is saying to her – that she’s going to give birth to the Son of God – sounds a touch beyond the realm of possibility.  And that’s also how I respond to unexpected intrusions – I get stressed, and then I ask skeptical questions as I try to process what’s going to happen, how my plans are going to change.  Thus far, Mary and I are very much on the same page.

However, this conversation is also challenging for me, because after the angel’s third utterance – explaining how Mary’s going to get pregnant (which sounds crazy) with the son of God (also crazy) while she’s engaged to a man she hasn’t slept with (which will have crazy consequences for her) – oh yeah, and that her past-her-prime cousin Elizabeth is pregnant (more crazy) – Mary basically says, “As you wish.”  This is the point where Mary and I diverge, because this is not at all how I would have responded; I would have continued being troubled and asking questions.  I would have wrung my hands, wondering how the angel’s prophecy would have fit in with my plans – and all the more so because it sounded so far-fetched.  I don’t think that Mary is completely on board with the prophecy at this point; I don’t think that happens until she visits her cousin Elizabeth, who confirms it.  But at the very least, Mary assents to it at this point, and that puts her way ahead of where I would be.

So when I read this story, I feel reassured knowing that Mary, in many ways, is like me and responds to unexpected disturbances like I would.  She makes me feel like I'm normal.  But she also challenges me, because in the face of a major wrench in her plans – even one that seems as insane and unlikely as what Gabriel says – she willingly agrees, whereas I tend to stew and resist.  And what’s the difference between her and me?  I can make every excuse:  Maybe given the context in which she lived, Mary didn’t have a lot of life options, so her plans weren’t as significant as mine.  Maybe she had less reason to doubt than I do.  But maybe it’s the fact that she trusts, even in the slightest, what the angel says about no word from God ever failing.

I am not Mary.  It appears that I need a lot more processing time than she does, and I have a much higher burden of proof.   But I think I can learn something from this teenager who lived 2000 years ago about accepting divine intrusions – and buying into the notion that God will do what God says that God will do, even in the most unlikely of circumstances.

Tomorrow's reading: Acts 26: 2-23