Help me today to break open the old wineskins of my fears and expectations.
Like John’s disciples, I too sometimes look at others and compare myself. I wonder why some fast while others do not. Why do some seem more devout, while I feel so very ordinary, trapped in my daily worries?
But You, Lord, gently dispel this comparison in my heart and ask me a question that is full of love and joy.
“Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”” (Matthew 9:15)
Lord, You are my Bridegroom
Your presence, Jesus, is not a time for mourning and strict rules. Your presence is a wedding feast! It is a celebration, a banquet. You came to eat and drink with me, a sinner. The world condemned You and still does not understand You today.
“For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’” (Matthew 11:18-19)
Thank you for looking beyond the criticism and for your love that knows no bounds. Your joy is contagious. This is the new wine that I cannot contain in old, rigid ideas about faith, in the old wineskins of my fear and judgment.
“Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”” (Matthew 9:17)
Prepare me for Your wedding feast
Lord, help me to live in this twofold awareness: that You are here with me now and that it is a time for joy. Yet at the same time, teach me to long for Your final coming.
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.” (Matthew 25:1)
May my lamp be lit today. May my heart burn in anticipation of You. I know the day is approaching when there will be no more separation, when mourning will pass, and the wedding feast will be complete.
“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” (Revelation 19:7)
Until then, Lord, may I be a reflection of Your joy in this world, not of rigidity. And when I feel unworthy of Your banquet today, remind me that in Your eyes, I am worthy and loved.
Amen.
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