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Reflect
Have a look at this, taken from the First Reading at today's Mass. It is from the Prophet Isaiah (Chapter 42) and it was written many centuries before Jesus came to earth. But nevertheless, it was talking about Jesus and about the things that he would do. Its a good think to reflect on as we get into Holy Week:
'Here is my servant who I uphold, my chosen one in whom my soul delights. I have endowed him with my spirit that he may bring true justice to the nations. He does not cry out or shout aloud, or make his voice heard in the streets. He does not break the crushed read, nor quench the wavering flame.
Faithfully, he brings true justice; he will neither waver nor be crushed until true justice is established in earth, for the islands are awaiting his law.'
That may be a little hard to understand in part. It's not meant to be a literal description of the things that Jesus would do, but rather it's meant to mane a point. It was trying to say that a messiah would come who would change the world in a new and different way: not by power or force, and not by shouting people down, but by the power of his love for his people. Ultimately, by dying for them.
A common mistake is to think that to be effective you have to be strong and powerful. It's as though the only effective people are the tough ones or the rich ones and the only effective organisations are those with lots of influence or resources. Sadly, that's often the case, but it shouldn't be.
Holy Week turns that on it's head. Holy Week tells us that acts of love and friendship and sacrifice can be more powerful than any show of strength or ego.
Holy Week shows us that, in the end, love conquers everything.
Pray
Loving Father,
As we enter into Holy Week and into all its amazing stories, help us to remember and to cherish the power of simple acts of love.
Help us to be people who look for these acts, and help us to be people who live out these acts in our lives.
Amen.
Challenge
Your challenge today is to do something simple that makes a difference to somebody else.
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