Welcome,
Friends,
To the 17th episode of Christian Meditation with me,
Anita Mathias.
Let's begin to detach from the world,
To retreat into the inner sanctuary of the self,
And to be still with our breath and with the God who gave us breath.
Close your eyes,
Sit straight or cross-legged,
If that's comfortable for you,
And begin to breathe.
Exhale to the count of five.
Breathe in deeply to the count of five.
Repeat,
Exhaling fully,
Inhaling deeply.
As you relax your body,
Ask for the love of God,
Who is your maker,
Who loves you,
To course through your body,
To all the stiff,
Tense places,
To places where there may be pain.
Perhaps touch any painful place,
Perhaps touch any painful place and ask God to heal it.
Raise your shoulders to your ears,
Slowly roll them clockwise,
Anti-clockwise.
Repeat.
Lift your arms upwards to stretch them.
Hold your right wrist with your left hand.
Stretch towards the right and then towards your left.
Boil your fists,
Tense your fingers,
Wriggle them out like a starburst.
Now send your breath towards your hips and let it travel towards your toes.
Clench your toes,
Wriggle them,
Relax.
Breathe out to the count of five,
Exhaling fully.
Breathe in deeply,
Inhaling the love of God.
Come Holy Spirit,
Begin to fill us,
Teach us.
Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon in today's Lebanon.
A Canaanite woman,
A Gentile,
Came to him,
Crying out,
Lord,
Son of David,
Have mercy on me.
My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.
Jesus did not answer a word.
So his disciples came to him and urged him,
Send her away,
For she keeps crying out after us.
He answered her,
I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.
The woman came and knelt before him.
Lord,
Help me,
She said.
He replied,
It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to the dogs.
Yes,
It is right,
She said.
Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table.
Then Jesus said to her,
Woman,
You have great faith.
Your request is granted.
And her daughter was healed at that moment.
Persistent prayer turns Christ's silence,
His no,
And his absolutely not,
To yes.
So a Gentile Syrophoenician woman came to Jesus,
Crying out,
Lord,
Have mercy on me.
My daughter is suffering terribly.
But Jesus remains silent.
Undeterred,
The woman keeps crying out.
And Jesus snubs her.
I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.
But she can't believe no could be his final word.
Lord,
Help me,
She says simply.
And then a crushing rebuff.
It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to the dogs.
But desperation and hitting rock bottom makes your prayers strangely powerful.
Yes,
It is right,
Lord,
She contradicts him.
Even dogs eat crumbs that fall.
Dogs,
Never entitled,
Hungry,
Humble,
Grateful,
Happy.
And Jesus praises her dogged faith in his goodness and power.
Her faith catalyzes the miracle she longs for.
He says,
Woman,
You have great faith.
Your request is granted.
Never passively accept any apparently intractable situations.
Reality is infinitely malleable in the hands of God.
We pray and people change.
Circumstances change.
We change.
So keep praying and little drops of the kindness of God soften and change the impossible situation and your heart.
Take your little mountain moving mustard seed of faith in the goodness of God and pray,
Seeing the kind Jesus in your mind's eyes.
Continue praying past God's silence,
His no and his absolutely not until Christ,
Charmed,
Says,
Yes,
It's time.
Go,
Girl,
Go.
This way.
Dream big and wide like childless Abraham stepping outside,
Dazzled by an immensity of stars and believing God's power could give him as many descendants.
But don't waste your passion and dream energy.
Pray for things that will bring you joy,
Yes,
But will also bless myriad others,
Creating something,
In Milton's phrase,
That the world will not willingly let die.
Each of Jesus's prayers were not answered affirmatively.
Neither will each of our requests be granted.
We are not wise enough to know what best to pray for.
But prayer incredibly does change things.
So keep praying for the shimmering dream which makes your heart burn and quiver.
Pray past apparent impossibility until the heavens open,
The spirit descends,
And you live and work and create with God's spirit energising and filling you.
Amen and Amen.
