If there's an area of your life that you know you need to make some adjustments to in order to be in obedience to His Word, do it today. Don't waste another moment disconnected from the Father. Instead, choose to obey and choose love, that your joy may be full!

Tuesday in the Octave of Easter

Acts 2:36-41

Psalm 33:4-5, 18-19, 20+22

J ohn 20:11-18  But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb; (12) and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. (13) They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they  have laid him." (14) Saying this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. (15) Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." (16) Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rab-bo'ni!" (which means Teacher). (17) Jesus said to her, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my  Father and your Father, to my God and your God." (18) Mary Mag'dalene went and said to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Meditation by Deb Fortina

A cts 2:36-41 “…’Repent and be baptized, every one of you…For the promise is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call.’…”

Psalm 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20 and 22 “…upright is the word of the LORD, and all his works are trustworthy.  He loves justice and right; of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full…”

John 20: 11-18 “… ‘Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.  Jesus said to her, “Mary!”’…”

St. Crescentia Hoess,  (1682-1744) Born in a town near Augsburg , her family was extremely poor.  So much so the convent could not afford to take her in the first time she knocked on their door. St. Crescentia is known for her humility and kindness to everyone, especially the poor.  She not only joined the order, but later became their Mother Superior.  Her order began thriving after she took over, and had them focus on prayer especially in prayer in quiet.  (See Saints of the day website)

I admit I had fallen away from some of my better prayer practices lat ely , the result of being too plugged into the world around me.  And so today when I read the Gospel, I was pleasantly surprised.  It was a call back to spend some quality time with the Word, and I gave myself permission to turn off the radio programs, and other news programs and just be with the Lord for the day.  It was one of those gifts you could miss receiving, because the Lord’s voice is subtle and best heard when we are quiet. 

The Gospel reading from John is about Mary Magdalene encountering the Lord at the Tomb after He has risen from the dead.  Yes, the Easter Season is filled with good news, and this passage in particular is one of my favorites.  In 1995, I was on a silent weekend retreat with Nebraska Contemplative Outreach, and we learned the practice of praying with scripture using lectio divina.  It was this passage from John’s Gospel that was used by the retreat director and so reading it brought back fond memories.

We were shown a monastic approach, and so the retreat director read the passage several times slowly; eventually letting one or two sentences remain with the others not being repeated.  The words that remained in reading that passage are listed above, and capture the moment when Mary Magdalene realizes Jesus is risen, not taken away from the grave, but actually there in the graveyard in front of her.  Her grief turns into so much joy, and you can tell Jesus is happy too, to be able to give her this gift.  It is a glorious hope-filled moment.  The experience of praying with scripture left a great memory, so much so that when I was asked to participate in writing a reflection during Lent in 1998, I took the plunge and said yes, and here we are today, twelve years later.

In the first reading from Acts, the difference in Peter is so noticeable; it doesn’t seem like the same person.  Peter had moved along in the shadows, trying not to be noticed when Jesus was captured and dragged into the courts before being sentenced to death.  And now he is speaking boldly about Jesus being “Lord and Christ” and calling people to repentance and conversion.  As he is filled with the Holy Spirit he tells all of us we will be given the gift of this same Spirit too.  We walk with Easter joy.  

Supplementary Reading

That Your Joy May Be Full

As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed My Father's commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete ---John 15:9–11

Is your joy full today? When something is full, there really isn't room for any more. It's a feeling of complete satisfaction. God wants your joy to be full! But too many people drag through the day with a sour outlook, no enthusiasm. They hardly ever smile. They never laugh anymore. Everything is a burden. But God never created us to endure life, He created us to enjoy life. We’re not supposed to go around with a long face, negative, discouraged, sour, and grumpy. As believers, you and I are supposed to be the happiest people on earth. Everywhere we go we should be so full of joy that we brighten other people’s day. Here’s the key: we have to choose love by choosing to obey the commands of Almighty God. That’s how our joy is full and complete.

If there's an area of your life that you know you need to make some adjustments to in order to be in obedience to His Word, do it today. Don't waste another moment disconnected from the Father. Instead, choose to obey and choose love, that your joy may be full!

Father God, I humbly come to You today. I ask for You peace and wisdom to do what is right in Your site. Thank You for filling me with You joy as I choose love by choosing to obey Your Word. In Jesus' Name. Amen. ---Joel Osteen

• 04/08/2010 13:36 - Apr 11, 2010 - Sunday Meditation (Willing to be Sent?)
• 04/08/2010 13:34 - Apr 10, 2010 - Saturday Meditation (Power of Testimonies!)
• 04/08/2010 13:32 - Apr 9, 2010 - Friday Meditation (And I will run to You)
• 04/05/2010 01:42 - Apr 8, 2010 - Thursday Meditation (Shalom My Friends...)
• 04/05/2010 01:40 - Apr 7, 2010 - Wednesday Meditation (Road to Emmaus)

• 04/04/2010 01:52 - Apr 5, 2010 - Monday Meditation (Do Not Be Afraid! Tell the World... JESUS Lives!)
• 04/03/2010 00:59 - Apr 4, 2010 - Resurrection Sunday (Tell the World that JESUS LIVES!)
• 04/02/2010 05:31 - Apr 3, 2010 - Saturday Meditation (From the Grave to the Sky, LORD I LIFT YOUR NAME ON HIGH!)
• 03/31/2010 21:25 - Apr 2, 2010 - Good Friday Meditation (Triumphant Defeats!)
• 03/31/2010 09:24 - Apr 1, 2010 - Maundy Thursday Meditation (Greatest Love of All!)