Today's meditation, while speaking of the inevitability of God holding us accountable, also speaks of the new start, the new beginnings, that also continually offers to us.

Today’s meditation, from Numbers, gave us the idea that God is always present, always ready, and always able to help us, even when the situation seems impossible.

Today's meditation focuses on the questions of how we should live for Christ and how that should impact others. In one of his other letters the apostle Paul describes his fellow Christians as 'living epistles' [letters] read by others'. So then, this poses a question, namely, what is it that others read about Jesus by virtue of our lives, both by what we say and by what we do? What message is getting through? And, if it is indeed about Jesus, is it getting through clearly and intelligibly so that others can grasp it? Something to think about.

Today's meditation, based on a passage from Proverbs, speaks of a mysterious supernatural being called Wisdom, who was at the beginning of the creation of the world. But here is where the matter gets confusing: just who is this person, and is she God? This just adds to the dilemma that we are always faced with on this date in the church year, Trinity Sunday, when we try to explain the unexplainable. The best that I can do when faced with this is to decide that it is too much for my 'feeble brain' to sort out or explain, and decide, instead, to simply trust what (and who) I do know and understand at least in part, which is Jesus.

The other meditation, the one from yesterday, concerns one of the heroes of my faith, the early apostle Barnabas. Now here is someone that I can get my head around. To me, he is a great role model, someone that I would sincerely like to imitate and be like. I think that the world, our families, our communities and our churches all need people like Barnabas, people who are encouragers. May you and I be more like him.

I'm afraid that all of us, from time to time, find ourselves in the position of today's psalmist (or of the prophet Habakkuk) when they ask, 'why do the wicked in this world prosper, when God's faithful people do not?' That, of course, fronts on the age-old question about the existence of evil. The best answer that I can come up with is that God, in His love and care for humankind, chooses not to force our hand, force us to do what is right, and instead, grants us the freedom and privilege of choose, that is, free will. And so, our choosing unwisely at times is a natural consequence of that freedom of choice. Even so, that isn't the end of the story. Justice is written into the very fabric of the universe and God will see to it that justice is done--and seen to be done. However, that will be according to His own timing and plan rather than ours. So, in the meantime we simply need to wait patiently, try to be faithful in our words and actions, and trust in His loving plan.

According to many scholars today's portion from Matthew is the pivotal point, the focal point of the entire gospel account. Jesus wants to know, not what other people think about Him, but what the Twelve, His own disciples, think. Of course, everything hangs on their answer to that question, and to one subsequent question. If they get that first question wrong, then nothing else matters. Peter gets it right. Peter, answering for all of them, 'You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God." That is undoubtably correct, but then there needs to be a follow-up question, namely, "What are you going to do about it?" Those are the questions that face all of us, and not just one time in our personal history, a kind of once and for all, but every day and every moment.

Questions surrounding the exercise of personal freedom and rules and our social responsibility to love and care for each other have been very much in the news of late, and so it is interesting to see that the apostle Paul addresses these issues centuries ago, albeit in an entirely different context. I hope that today's passage and meditation will be inspiring and stimulate you into further thinking on this matter.

To have a friend, someone on our side, someone 'in our corner' as it were, is one of the most precious things we humans can ever enjoy. And to think that we have that in our God, in our Saviour Jesus Christ. It is something that today's psalmist, David, picks up on, not so much for the sense of intimacy, but for the comfort and strength and protection that having such a friend affords him. And, not just him: it is something that we can all enjoy--and relish--and depend upon.

How often we humans feel as if we're 'between a rock and a hard place' (to use the old expression), totally at our wits' end in terms of any strategy or way forward. This is certainly how the future King David felt when he was on the run, hiding from the wrathful King Saul, a state of mind that is fully reflected in today's psalm. And yet, even in the midst of this, David knew that he could trust fully in God. That trust, that reliance, is something that we need as well, as we face our own uncertain and difficult times.

Today is that wonderous and wonderful day we call Pentecost, the birthday of the church. Interestingly, the author of today's Forward Day by Day meditation chose not to celebrate that event, but rather a more distant and yet continuing one, an event of even greater import, namely the creation of the world, the universe, by a loving and incredibly versatile Creator. And, as I like to say is that He is still at work in our world, if only we would have eyes to see it.

For me, personally, today has its own 'wonders', for on this exact day in history, and on this very day of the Church Year, Pentecost, I was baptized back in 1949 at Holy Trinity, Pine Lake (in central Alberta near Red Deer), and ordained as a deacon in 1977 at the Cathedral Church of the Redeemer in Calgary. Two additional acts of God in creation, I must say. It only goes to show that God takes and choses, and uses, the most unlikely of creatures for His glory--and His work. That goes for all of us--without exception.

Today's Scripture passage and meditation raise some serious questions for me, questions about faith versus presumption. On the one hand, I have seen church advertisements that promise healings and miracles, and have often wondered whether this was not something like expecting that God, like a trained seal, would jump through hoops and do their bidding. On the other hand, I have seen and experienced things that can only be described as miracles. So, my question remains. When should we have faith and expect God to do 'the impossible', and when should we not? I know that far too often we do not even ask, but then, just when should we be asking--and expecting? I'm afraid that in this I am still very much a learner.

A new covenant, a new agreement between God and us humans, one that is now written within our hearts. A new covenant that is now enabled and meditated by the Holy Spirit, and that now gives us a new start. Wow. This is good news, great news, for all of us. A new beginning where we can start over again, that is what our passage and our meditation for today are all about.

It is true, so wonderfully true: Jesus has taken our sins, all of them, past, present and future, and removed them forever, forgotten and buried in the ocean of His forgetfulness. And none of this comes as a matter of our deserving or merit. It is entirely a gift, a free gift, from a loving and merciful God. That means that every day is a brand new beginning, a new start. It does not mean that our past has no impact upon us or that it doesn't have any consequences or repercussions, but that today we can start afresh, knowing that God has dealt with all of that. As I used to say in my more 'down times', 'wow, I haven't messed up this day yet!' Yes, indeed, today is a new day, one for us and God to face together, with renewed confidence and a profound sense of relief. Thanks be to God.

There are many things in our world today, and in our personal lives, that can make us uncomfortable or uneasy. Of course, there is covid and its impacts and developments, the situation in Ukraine and elsewhere in the world, and countless other things as well, things big and small. So, how do we react when we encounter such things? Do we try to shunt them aside or dispel them, as did the people who encountered Jesus and the demoniacs? And, like them, do we thereby dismiss the possibility that God might be at work, albeit unseen or unnoticed? Perhaps God is at work in some of the above mentioned things that make us uncomfortable as well? Maybe, like those people, we need to see with new eyes what God might be doing. Anyway, there's an idea to ponder.

Friendship is always been something highly extolled among us humans, but have we ever taken the time to think of what friendship with God might mean? Moses was described as being friends with God, and look what it meant for him. He was able to go on, persevere and put up with things (and people) that most of us never could have. And, then, of course, Jesus describes Himself as our friend (John 15:15). I can scarcely think of all that this might mean. I think that it is something that we need to 'unpack' a bit more.

Recently, I came across a fund-raising letter, a financial appeal, from another denomination. It laid out a broad vision for the raising up, equipping and training of parish clergy, and, as a vital part of this plan, suggested reviving the practice of curacies. (For those unfamiliar with the idea it consists of placing a newly ordained person with a senior priest for a pre-established length of time, in order that the new person can learn from the more senior person, to 'learn the ropes' as it were, but under a supervised, safer platform. The proposal in this letter was that these new positions could be funded from three streams, from the sponsoring diocese, from the parish in question, and from the personal fund-raising of the new clergy person. In times past--at least in the dioceses that I was familiar with--the financial burden fell just on the parish in question, and so most parishes could simply not afford it. This plan seems to be a way around that.

All of this put me in mind of two things. Firstly, of my own privileged position. Not only was I raised in the church and able to experience so much of it first hand, both as an ordinary lay person but then from positions of leadership was well, but I also was able to serve in two internships and one curacy--and from a very wide perspective to say the least, an immense inner city church, a widely dispersed rural parish and a suburban big city parish! What a privilege to have that kind of mentoring and that kind of practical, hands-on experience!

But not only that: we see something of that kind of mentoring all over the Scriptures as well, in today's lesson and elsewhere. I happen to think that it is something that we should take up again, and be much more intentional about--not only with those in leadership but also with the rank and file, the ordinary people in the pews.

Today's passage from Acts is one of those pivotal points, one of those turning points, of Biblical history. All sorts of things stemmed from it, and yet, at its onset, it seemed to be anything but significant or earth-shattering. It was one of those opportunities that could easily have been missed or not taken up on.

My suspicion is that life, our lives, are like that, namely that opportunities abound, are all around us, just waiting for us to seize upon. I pray that with the guidance and help of God, we may indeed take up on them.

Today's passage, to me at least, raised the head of a not always appreciated but needed sense of gratitude, something not always welcome because we often feel that we deserve it or had it coming. And yet, all that we have, whether in terms of our faith, or elsewhere, is actually a gift, wholly unmerited and unearned, from a loving and gracious God.

Today’s meditation (and of course, Jesus' words as well) had to do with obedience, which isn't entirely that popular in this 'I'll do what I want', 'I'll do it my way', kind of world. For many people, anything that impinges on my personal choice, my personal freedom, is frowned upon and yet, that is exactly what the gospel calls for. We surrender to God and to each other, not because we necessarily want to, or because it is obviously 'good for us' but because it is for the common good or according to the will of God.