Moving Forward - 2 February 2025

SUNDAY, February 2, Presentation of Jesus in the Temple

Luke 2:29-31 Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples.

Simeon, in his lifelong search for consolation for his occupied nation and his oppressed people, finds it in the sight of the fully God, fully human infant Jesus. When it seems like all we feel is the trauma and all we experience is trouble, we can look to Simeon as a reminder to see and trust in the God we know as Emmanuel, the Divine with us and in us. And sometimes, in looking with Simeon at the infant Jesus, I, too, can find peace in the paradoxical union of vulnerability and almighty power that is God in the flesh, experiencing everything from the cradle to the cross.

When I watch the news or hear of a friend’s new cancer diagnosis, the Christ in me offers me the courage to love in a world that says it’s too risky and to rest in a society that regards overworking to be a virtue. Jesus modeled and offers a power and peace that is felt alongside pain and fear, in the knowledge that neither is stronger than Divine Love. 

MOVING FORWARD: How does seeing Jesus as both fully God and fully human shape your prayer life?

PRAY for the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

Ps 84 or 24:7-10 | Malachi 3:1-4 | Hebrews 2:14-18 | Luke 2:22-40

(Source: Forward Day by Day Movement)