Hello friends,
This is Mark Gladman-Otonono's brother Frederick James,
Your friendly neighborhood monk in dogs,
Welcoming you to day four of our Lenten 2026 series,
In the Wilderness,
As we walk through the Gospel of John.
As we get started today,
As always,
I invite you to settle yourself gently,
To allow your body to arrive before your thoughts do.
If it helps,
And safe,
Close your eyes,
Let your breathing slow,
No need to change it,
Just simply notice it.
Inhale,
And release.
And again,
Inhale,
And soften.
Let this be enough for now.
Today,
We listen to one of the simplest invitations in all of scripture.
Two disciples are standing nearby,
As Jesus walks past,
John points towards him and says,
Look,
The Lamb of God.
And the two disciples begin to follow.
Jesus turns and notices them and asks,
What are you looking for?
Now,
Notice the language there.
Notice that Jesus doesn't ask,
What do you believe?
Are you ready?
Do you understand who I am?
But just simply,
What are you looking for?
And this is a powerful question,
Because it opens rather than closes.
It's a question that makes room for desire.
And the disciples answer,
Somewhat awkwardly,
Rabbi,
Where are you staying?
And Jesus responds with the most amazing words,
Come and see.
He doesn't give an explanation or any kind of explanation.
Or a theology or a persuasion.
Just an invitation to come and share space.
To walk alongside.
To abide.
Now,
Notice this carefully.
Jesus doesn't build faith through argument.
He forms it through companionship.
Before belief becomes articulated.
Before understanding becomes clear.
There's simply time spent together.
Faith,
At its beginning,
Is relational.
It's shared presence.
And this is where abiding quietly begins.
Not as certainty,
But as willingness.
Willingness to draw near.
Willingness to stay curious.
Willingness to walk without having the map.
Now,
The wilderness is often misunderstood.
We imagine it as a place demanding answers.
Yet,
More often,
The wilderness loosens our grip on them.
In the wilderness,
Clarity is not always given.
But you know what is?
Presence.
And sometimes,
Presence is the deeper gift.
Because when answers arrive too quickly,
We might cling to the answer instead of the one who brought the answer to us.
But when we're invited to simply come and see,
We learn another way of being.
A slower way.
A relational way.
A way of abiding.
Consider this for a moment.
Where might you be resisting invitation because you want clarity first?
Where in your life are you waiting to understand everything before you allow yourself to follow?
Gently notice what surfaces.
No judgment.
Just awareness.
There's a quiet temptation in many of us to master faith rather than enter it.
To analyze before we accompany.
To define before we dwell.
Yet,
Jesus doesn't say,
Come and figure me out.
He says,
Come and see.
As if to remind us that love is known through nearness.
That trust grows through time shared with one another.
That understanding ripens through abiding.
For these next few breaths,
Imagine yourself hearing this invitation personally.
Not addressed to a crowd or spoken generally.
Just there.
But offered to you directly.
Come and see.
Let those words rest lightly within you.
No urgency.
No demand.
Just welcome.
What might it mean today to follow without mastering?
To let faith be relational again.
Less about arriving.
More about remaining and abiding.
You don't have to solve the mystery of God to walk with God.
You don't have to hold certainty to be held.
Sometimes the most honest prayer is simply,
I'm willing to come and see.
Abiding really begins in confidence.
Mostly it begins in consent.
That quiet inner yes.
The yes to staying near.
The yes to not knowing or not needing to know.
The yes to letting relationship unfold at its own pace.
And so curiosity isn't immaturity.
It's openness.
It keeps the heart permeable to grace.
Maybe this is why Jesus said be like children.
So if you find yourself full of questions,
Like a child even,
You may be closer to abiding than you realize.
As we bring our time together today to a close,
Rest again in your breathing.
Feel the steadiness beneath each inhale,
Each exhale.
Nothing forced.
Nothing achieved.
Simply received.
Hear the invitation one more time.
Come and see.
And perhaps today,
Release the need to understand everything before you follow.
Let it be enough to stay near.
Let it be enough to remain curious.
Let it be enough to walk with the one who walks with you.
Let it be enough to abide.
Stay here for a few moments if you wish.
And when you're ready,
Carry this gentle invitation with you into the rest of your day.
Come and see.
And may grace,
Peace,
And love be with you in your going and in your seeing.
Amen.
Until tomorrow,
My friend.
Peace and love be with you.
