Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“A voice cries out: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Saturday, January 14, 2023
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
This text is revisited in the gospels as a prophecy fulfilled in John the Baptist. John did, indeed, cry out in the wilderness “Prepare the way of God’s promised Messiah.” His preparation was less about landscaping the earth and more about landscaping the heart. He called out to the people then and to us now to remove any obstacles we have put in the way of our full communion with God in Christ Jesus.
My heart can be quite the rugged and impassable wilderness sometimes. Self-will, self-righteousness, judgment, perfectionism—these are the primary stumbling blocks I put in the way of a right relationship with God on the daily. Of course they’re not obstacles for God—God can easily pass over, around, and through them (and frequently does) in order to shower me with grace and hope. But I absolutely cannot get around them myself. I know I don’t need to earn God’s love, but I do have a part to play in what is a two-way relationship. It’s on me to heed the voice crying in the wilderness and take whatever action I can to alter the landscape of my heart. For me that looks like intensive recovery work, active participation in a faith community, prayer and meditation (to the best of my ability), and acts of selflessness. Again, none of these earn me God’s favor. They help me move closer to who and what God might have me be in the world, and open me to receive God’s transforming love rather then turning it away.
I do none of this perfectly. Those obstacles still remain. But now and then I may find a more gentle path that leads me into quiet rest in the Holy Spirit.
What obstacles do I place between myself and God?
