Tuesday February 2 Epiphany 4
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Psalm 61
I was burdened and God became my strength – be with me always.
Psalm 62
In face of evil, we trust in God to be our solid foundation.
Isaiah 52: 1-12
God is encouraging the ruined city of Jerusalem to rejoice as her people return to her, bringing with them the sacred vessels so the temple can again be in use. God’s victory over their oppressors will be so complete that they won’t need to hurry back! We are called to cultivate that counter-cultural expectation of joy and calmness in our modern circumstances when we are oppressed by seemingly irresistible forces of destruction.
Mark 8: 1-10
Jesus feeds four thousand of the hated aboriginal people from seven loaves and then has seven baskets left over. Why seven? The Israelites had been told to exterminate the seven aboriginal nations when they entered the land. It is clear that Jesus is treating the original peoples as worthy of full respect and dignity—God’s care and respect overflows. It’s not hard to imagine the implications for our time.
This week’s collect:
Living God,
in Christ you make all things new.
Transform the poverty of our nature
by the riches of your grace,
and in the renewal of our lives
make known your glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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