Today is the Tenth Sunday after Trinity. Today’s reading from Matthew’s Gospel takes place immediately after the account of the feeding of the five thousand. Jesus and the disciples had come away by boat to find a quiet place. Instead they found a crowd of five thousand people. After Jesus had taken five loaves and blessed, broken and distributed the pieces to feed the crowd, he sent the disciples back into the boat and he withdrew up the mountain to pray. The winds rose quickly, the sea was stirred up and the disciples were afraid. Jesus came to them through the gale and the wind dropped. Here is good evidence that Jesus does not desert his disciples in their hour of need when buffeted by the gales of life.
For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during the preceding week, I invited reflection on the image of gales. In today’s picture from his book, The Windy Day, Teddy Horsley hears and sees the gale rattling the dustbins and scattering rubbish across his path.
Lord Jesus Christ,
you came to Peter
when he was in distress.
Come to us when we are battered by the storms of life,
that we may grasp your steady hand;
for you are our God.
Amen.
Next Sunday is the Eleventh Sunday after Trinity. The reading from Matthew’s Gospel tells of Jesus accepting the Gentile woman. The image to help prepare for this theme is removing barriers. You can find out more about that theme by looking at the Educational Resources and the Preparation Resources.
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Ninth Sunday after Trinity – Exploring the Sunday Gospel