To Do Good

TO DO GOOD

a prayer to open

Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

May your Kingdom come, may your will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.

Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand. Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus’ enemies watched him closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath.

Jesus said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.” Then he turned to his critics and asked, “Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?” But they wouldn’t answer him.

He looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus.

The experts in Jewish law and leaders of the synagogue consistently sought to trick Jesus into breaking the laws by which they lived. These were laws they held sacred and believed were God-ordained, yet these leaders were so unbending that they valued compliance with the law over compassion toward people. Jesus valued both.

Close your eyes and imagine yourself sitting in a favorite, familiar spot. Get comfortable there, listening for sounds, seeing what is around you. Then imagine Jesus next to you or across from you, looking into your eyes and then saying these words: “Is this a day to love and build someone else up, or to judge and speak or act harshly?”

• What would you do today if you allowed Jesus’ words to guide you? What would you stop doing today if you allowed his words to guide you?
• What doubts arise in you as you think about allowing compassion to trump compliance with what you believe is right under the law? What fears or worries arise in you when you consider Jesus’ words applying to you?
• From whom have you withheld compassion because you don’t agree with their choices, are angry with them, or disapprove of their behavior or attitudes? Take a few moments to ask God to show you how Jesus would show compassion to those people.

Father, forgive me for the times I have withheld love and compassion and chosen to be unnecessarily rigid in my thinking. Help me to always choose to do good. Grant me a spirit that seeks your truth and extends your grace. When I become legalistic, show me, and lead me to ask the right questions to seek to understand what is happening in my own heart and mind. Lead me in every way. Amen.