Dear Friends,
In Psalm 62, the Israelites sing to God as their rock, their salvation, their fortress and their refuge. Even in the worst of their times, the Israelites were confident that God was all these things for them.
Centuries later, Jesus appeared among the Israelites, humbly born, obscure for so many years of his life. Did Jesus really know what people thought of him? Was he their fortress, their rock, their salvation and their deliverer? Did he want them to see and name the depth in him? Did he want to know if they found him loveable and loving? Did they know how far he was willing to go to save them from eternal death? “Who do you say I am?” Jesus asked Peter.
We seldom, if ever, ask people that question about ourselves: “Who do you say I am?”
For one thing, we don’t want to give people the power of characterizing us.
But if we are honest, we really do want to know what people think about us.
Am I among those who tenderize life?
Do I stand ready to turn the world upside down with a smile, a pause that refreshes?
Do I welcome budding life and never crush the smoldering wick?
Do I have confidence that the Father will use me to help others through to life everlasting, and am I willing?
Jesus is ours for the asking, ours to recognize for who he is. Jesus is an endless loaf of bread and a cup brimming over with delicious wine that hints of honey and the promise of sweetness to come.
Who do we say Jesus is? Will we learn from him?
~ Sister Joan Sobala
