Daily Reading: 7 July

(from www.christianaid.org.uk)

Teacher, I will follow

Something to read

Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.

- Matthew 8: 19-20 .

Something to think about

What does it mean to you to have a safe place to live and to sleep? How would your life be different if you didn’t know when you would have to move on?

Do you know someone who has lost their home? What stresses did it cause?

How did relationships and behaviours adjust? What else was lost? Were there any gains?

How did Jesus survive his nomadic lifestyle? As a carpenter, he would have built homes. Where was his centre, his identity, his belonging? What is the nature of the ‘many mansions’ promised to his disciples?

Something to do

Evaluate how much time and energy you invest in your own home and sense of place.

How could your home, your being, your life, offer a safe space for others?

In what ways does Christian Aid follow Christ wherever he goes?

Something to pray

Lord God, thank you for the people who are willing to leave their homes, and for those who are willing to share their homes and lives to provide shelter and safety.

Thank you for Christian Aid staff and partners who leave their own security to follow you.

Today’s contributor is the Rev Cheryl Meban, Presbyterian chaplain to Ulster University, with a care for justice, human rights and international economic transformation.