Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“He said to them, ‘Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?’”
NL Daily Devotion for Thursday, December 23, 2021
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
My little brother got lost once as a kid. We were probably in Sears. My mom panicked when she couldn’t find him. She searched everywhere among the big, round clothing racks. She went to the courtesy desk to find out if anyone had seen him. Finally, she found him. Where? In the toy section, poring over all the Star Wars toys. I mean, duh. Where else would he be? Sure he’d had to know where the toys were, and he had to ride an escalator to the lower level to get there. And he was only four. But he knew where he wanted to be and he went.
Jesus, too, knew where he wanted to be. He knew how to get there, and he wandered off on his own through a crowded city without thought of the rest of his family. And when they found him and confronted him, he seemed as surprised as my brother had. “Duh, where else would I be?”
We are called to wonder whether, left to our own devices, we would choose to be in God’s presence above all else. Or would other distractions or obligations pull us off track?
If I were to wander off from the demands of life, where would I most want to go?