St. Jude’s Church
Stony Hill
Our Lenten Journey
Daily Reflections for Lent 2021
by The St. Jude’s Writers
Friday in the Fifth Week of Lent, Year B
26 March 2021
Reading: John 12: 20-33
Scripture:“Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say-‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name.” (John 12: 27-28)
Reflection: Jesus is in Jerusalem, telling the people in the crowd that His hour is nigh, the time when He would be delivered to the authorities and be dealt with as an insurrectionist. Not even the disciples fully understand this, and no-one is there to comfort Jesus as He acknowledges the hours of horror ahead of him. In verse 27, we hear Jesus openly admit His distress, and in the same instant, He accepts His fate, and confirms His obedience by saying: “Father, glorify thy name.”
God responds, and the frightened people think it is thunder. God spoke, yet the people still refused to believe. They heard the sound and chose to hear it as thunder. Only some of them are able to acknowledge the sound as a message. What separated those few from the others who only heard thunder? In which group do each of us fall? In how many ways must God speak for us to hear? How many signs and wonders must we see and hear about before we recognize God at work in our lives? We explain away our successes as coincidences, as luck, and of our own doing, without recognizing the hand and voice of God pointing our way.
As we approach the final days of Lent, we check ourselves to see if we have used the time intentionally, in reflection and on the Word, so that we can better hear and understand God. Reflection does not end after Lent. Let us spend these last few days of the season intentionally, seriously, seeking God’s face, listening for God’s voice, and acknowledging God’s words.
Meditation: God knows your voice. Do you know His voice?
Prayer: Great Shepherd, I am comforted that You will always keep me in Your flock and seek me when I stray. Teach me to know Your voice and to always respond to Your call. Amen.
The St. Jude’s Writers
St. Jude’s Church, Stony Hill
Anglican Diocese of Jamaica and The Cayman Islands
26 March 2021