SHOW: YOU ARE

THE PRAYER        

• Find a quiet space.        
• Breathe deeply and recognise God with you in this moment.        
• When you are ready, speak to God about this time together.        
• After you've finished praying, go through the following passage a few times slowly and thoughtfully (preferably out loud).      
• Allow God to meet you in these words.

God, teach me lessons for living so I can stay the course. Psalm 119: 33 (MSG)

THE FIRST READING

Read this passage slowly (preferably out loud) as you allow God to meet you in these words. Pay attention to anything God might be saying as you do.

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:13-16 (ESV)

RESPONSE

Take some time to respond (write down, draw, pray, etc.) to God’s prompting in the first reading of the passage. What is he highlighting and saying to you through this?

THE SECOND READING

Read the passage again (slowly and preferably out loud) through the “lens” of what The Spirit highlighted in the first reading. Listen for anything else the Spirit might be saying.

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:13-16 (ESV)

THE REFLECTION

There are a few things that I remember well about my first day in high school. The army of students swarming the entrance gates carrying backpacks and kit bags like ants crowding into a colony. The enormous 12th graders towering over me with deep voices and muscles I never knew existed.

And my blazer. It was an oversized jacket that swallowed me with sleeves stretching over my fingertips and the hem hanging down to the back of my knees. You see, I don’t come from a wealthy family. Don’t get me wrong. We had enough to get by, but luxuries were, well, luxuries. We appreciated what we had and saved where we could. I knew this, and so it came as no surprise when I found myself standing in front of the store mirror in a blazer that could fit two of me and then some. I remember complaining to my mother, “it’s too big! I look ridiculous!” and her response to that, although true, did little to comfort my teenage insecurities. “We need it to last you a good few years Matthew. Don’t worry, it won’t be too big for long. You’ll grow into it”.

When I watch Jesus with his disciples in the Gospels, he seems a lot like my mother all those years ago. He’s constantly giving them jackets that seem far too big for them and assuring them that, with time, they’ll grow into it. I think he does the same thing with us today. In fact, that is one of the distinctives of the God we find in Jesus. While many of the other gods that fill our world seem happy to relegate humanity to the role of passive bystander or faithful observer, the God we find in Jesus insists on calling us beyond our perceived capacity.

In Jesus we are not just spectators, we are participants. In Jesus, we are partners with God in the work of healing his world. That's what the practice of showing is trying to awaken in you. A deep conviction that you’re here for a reason. You weren't created just to helplessly watch the world fall apart. You were made for partnership with the living God, the maker of heaven and earth.

This may terrify you. It may seem like an oversized jacket right now. But as you step out and learn to trust God, with time, you’ll grow into it. Probably not in the way you expect, but you will. And, every time you’re tempted to remind God why he has clearly made a mistake, you’ll hear him patiently whisper back to you, “you are, because of who I am in you."