Daily Devotion – May 15, 2020 – Pastor Brian Hansen
John 14: 18-20
”I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.
When Jesus says that we are in Him and He is in God the father, he’s communicating that we are one through our identity in Christ. If we are one in God through Christ, then no matter what we face, no matter how significant the heartache and loss, no matter how deep or wide the isolation may feel, we are never, ever, alone. We are in God, and we are also in each other. You and I are forever interconnected to God in Christ. This means that even though we are currently apart from each other we are never really separated from one another. Our connection can never be broken, because we all live and have our being in God.
Yet, often, we try to divide ourselves from one another. Right now, we are dividing ourselves from each other in the spirit of love for the sake of the neighbor. But, during the normal rhythms of life, it’s amazing the energy we give to trying to divide ourselves from one another by our differences, by the way we look or act or believe. And in dividing ourselves, we ultimately destroy our community. When we act as if the other does not matter to us, we destroy the community that God has created us to be. However, we have a God who won’t allow that; God won’t rest until all are one. God becomes incarnate in Christ to show us the strength and power of unifying love. God’s mission has a church, and as that church we are called to the work of erasing the lines of separation and divide, the lines between me and you, us and them.
During this time of social distancing, I believe that God’s mission is still alive and active. God is continually seeking ways to guide us into finding new and ever powerful ways to be community, to restore relationships. God is at work in and through you: through the words and actions that you share, through the compassion you extend through cards and calls, through the small and powerful acts of love that we choose to extend to each other.
And so, what a great day to stretch the boundaries of our community in learning how to be community together while we are apart. What a great day to find new ways to love and support one another even when we can’t be together. What a great day to do our best to live out the mission and heart of God. To be in relationship with one another by extending God’s love in ways that help us all experience the presence of God alive and active in our world.
Prayer:
Jesus said, “I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” And we are all connected to each other. Thanks be to God. Amen.
