Thursday, March 5

Scripture for the Day:

For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ‘You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not murder”; and “whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.” But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister,* you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, “You fool,” you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. – Matthew 5:20-26

Reflection – Betsy Adams

Writing with Lent weeks away, I am already deep into desert time: Tired of the short days and cold nights. Frightened by the daily disclosures of further economic calamity. Panicked at the possibility of losing my job. Certain I haven’t anything to give my beloveds, let alone the stranger whose real needs and desperation far outstrip my anxious imaginings. When Lent comes, I will remember this as familiar territory and not an impregnable vault offering no sequel.
I will enter the desert then as into an old friend’s embrace, and will know again that it asks only this: To remove the blinders. To listen well. To sit on my propensity to judge harshly. To find the humility —on my worst day, in my worst hour— to be no better than one kindness, one moment of presence beyond my imagined capacity. Jesus isn’t saying, to us, today, “one false move and you’ll burn in hell forever.” For us, today, I think Jesus is saying this: “The only law is the commandment from a merciful God to love. The action required is only in your heart." In the desert, God in His mercy reveals His infinite love for us at our least accomplished, at our most vulnerable, most compromised, most culpable.
The Lenten journey is about allowing the transformation that this revelation of mercy promises: The capacity to take God’s desert gift and 'pay it forward' with a loving heart.

To ponder and pray: Is there someone whom you have judged harshly… perhaps yourself, or another? What will happen if you pray to see that person with God’s eyes, God’s mercy?