Send us a text The Kingdom of God (which is, partly, a mysterious, shimmering internal palace in which we experience righteousness, peace and joy) is, in lightning flashes, here already—we can leap into it—though not yet fully here. We sense the rainbowed presence of Christ in the joy which pulses through creation. Christ strolls into our rooms with his wisdom and guidance & things change. Prayers are answered, we are healed, our hearts are strangely warmed. Sometimes. And yet, we also ex...

Send us a text "Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." And so, Jesus states a law of life. Those who broadcast their amazingness will be humbled, since God dislikes--scorns that, as much as people do. For to trumpet our success, wealth, brilliance, giftedness or popularity is to get distracted from the purpose for which we were created into pointless, worthless activity. Those who love power, who are sure they know best, and w...

Send us a text Christ’s theological and political enemies try, always try, to catch him out with multitudes of trick questions. Which is the greatest commandment in the law? they ask, craftily, ready to make a case for the one he does not choose. And from the morass of the 613 commands in the Torah, Christ chooses just two. The great and first commandment, the megale and protos commandment, he says, is to love God, with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind. Love God, be...

Send us a text Jesus, wise as a serpent, gentle as a dove, brave as a lion. Outraged at those who attempted to make money off people’s faith and longing for God, he rampages through the temple, overturning the tables of the moneychangers. He heals, he teaches; he’s proclaimed as Messiah. And he incurs the wrath of his old enemies, the chief priests and elders who ask: Who gave you the authority to do such things? But Jesus coolly answers their hostile questions with ...

Send us a text So, Joseph, intending to quietly break up with his fiancée, Mary, found pregnant, though not be him, is assured by an angel that she had conceived by the power of God’s spirit, and the child would be the long-awaited Messiah, who would deliver people from the chokehold of their sins. And Joseph is not afraid, and lightning-bolt “coincidences” verified the angel’s words. A new star appeared in the heavens, and astrologers from the East, laden with gifts for the new King, followe...

Send us a text Tamar, who seduced her father-in-law, Judah. Rahab, a Canaanite prostitute. Bathsheba, mother of Solomon, who was raped by David. Jacob, scammer and inheritance thief! Solomon, with 300 concubines and 700 wives. They were all among the chosen ancestors of Jesus. From them, he came. Iraqis, Canaanites, Moabites, Hittites, Ammonites--were all named as his ancestors. From all of them, Christ came. And he came for everyone. All can dive into the cascades of his love. He is J...

Send us a text So counter-cultural were Jesus’s values, that even those who lived with him continuously for three years could not fully grasp them. So his spirited apostles, James and John, whom he called “The Sons of Thunder,” get their mum to ask him for the places of the greatest prestige and visibility, on his right and left, in his court, once he came into his Kingdom. And the other ten are indignant! Jesus asks them to cluster around him and explains (once again!) the ground rules of th...

Send us a text So Jesus makes a beautiful offer to the earnest, moral young man who came to him, seeking a spiritual life: Come, follow me. Remarkably, the young man claimed that he has kept all the commandments from his youth, including the command to love one’s neighbour as oneself, a statement Jesus does not challenge. The challenge Jesus does offers him, however, the man cannot accept—to sell his vast possessions, give the money to the poor, and follow Jesus encumbered. He leaves, grievin...

Send us a text https://anitamathias.com/2023/09/07/how-to-find-the-freedom-of-forgiveness/ How to Find the Freedom of Forgiveness Completely letting go of anger and resentment and forgiving is an emotional transaction as well as a decision of the will. We discover that we cannot command our emotions to forgive and let go of anger, just as we cannot ourselves to love or like or hate. But given that forgiveness gives us clarity of mind, spirit, and emotions, and so much more space in each of th...

Send us a text So, the temple taxmen come for Jesus and Peter. And Jesus, who repeatedly referred to his powerful body as God’s temple on earth, decides to pay anyway, to avoid a scandal over something trivial--for him. And so, he instructs Peter, a professional fisherman with boats, and massive nets, to catch a fish with a line and hook, tool of the amateur fisherman, and look inside its mouth! And Peter swallows his pride, fishes like a weekend hobbyist, and finds a four-drachma coin,...

Send us a text Jesus is blazingly honest about the cost of following him. We can no longer follow ourselves, or be driven by our prideful or self-indulgent desires. We submit our wills to a greater, phenomenally brilliant will, and accept His assignments for our day, and our life. His assignments, “the cross”, so to say, involve the discipline necessary for growth, rather than neurosis, in Carl Jung’s phrase. It’s the discipline necessary to maintain our health and an orderly household, and d...

Send us a text The story of an amazing, persistent, feisty woman who argues with Jesus, and contradicts Jesus until his No turns to Yes. Jesus praises her for her faith, one of the handful of times Jesus praises humans... and it's almost always for their faith, their honesty, or their ability to hear from the Spirit. My memoir: Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India UK USA Blog: anitamathias.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anitamathiaswriter/ Instagram: https://ww...

Send us a text Character-building difficulty and uncertainty comes for each of us, when it feels as if we are tossed in a boat on a stormy sea, buffeted by waves, with the wind against us. And in the encircling gloom, Christ whispers the same words with which he reassured his storm-tossed disciples, “Take courage. It is I. Do not be afraid.” And Peter, the confident risk-taker, says, “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water.” And Jesus says another of his great wo...

Send us a text Jesus says that following him is like discovering priceless treasure hidden in a field. The finder would joyfully sell everything to buy it, as should we! And so he speaks of living in the Kingdom of God, living with him as our High King and Lord, as a treasure, worth trading everything for. It's described as experiencing peace, joy, and operating in the power of the Holy Spirit. As literally selling everything we have would take time, so too will adjusting our live...

Send us a text (The meditation on Matthew 12:22 begins at 6:01.) On using words to light a fires of inspiration and joy, not devastation, as the Apostle James describes! Words—can inspire, set us on fire, delight… They can also "set the whole course of one's life on fire," as the Apostle James dramatically says, destroying precious friendships and relationships. How do we ensure our words bring light, not darkness? We need the Scriptural promise in Ezekiel of the new heart and the new spirit....

Send us a text (The meditation on Matthew 11:28-29 begins at 6:42.) One of the many literary devices Jesus uses is paradox, as when we offers the weary and burdened rest--by bearing his yoke. Bearing the yoke of Jesus means surrendering our freedom to say and do what we want. It means never committing to things before a chat with him. It means checking in to make sure that we are indeed doing things in his way--for he always has a surprisingly better way of doing things! Jesus s...

Send us a text Meditation on Matthew 9:27-30 begins at 5:28. Jesus was the only person in the Bible who restored the sight of blind men. The two blind men called out a simple prayer, known as the Jesus prayer, “Jesus, have mercy on us. And their faith activated a miracle when Christ replied, “According to your faith, be it done to you.” And healed them! The same simple prayer changes things in our lives, too; the transcript of our prayers often becomes the transcript of our lives. However, w...

Send us a text (Scriptural meditation begins at 4:49.) Simon Peter was a professional fisherman. And Jesus keeps teaching him, again and again, that he, Jesus, has greater mastery over fishing. And over everything else. After fruitless nights of fishing, Jesus tells Peter where to cast his nets, for an astounding catch. Jesus walks on water, calms sea storms. It’s easy to pray in desperation when we feel hard-pressed and incompetent, and, often, Christ rescues us, adds a 1 before our ...

Send us a text (Scriptural meditation begins at 5:25.) I'm meditating through the Gospel of Matthew. "Do not judge," Jesus says, "and you too will escape harsh judgement." And so once again, he reiterates a law of human life and of the natural world—sowing and reaping. Being an immensely practical human, Jesus realises that we are often most “triggered” when we observe our own faults in other people. And the more we dwell on the horrid traits of people we know in real life...

Send us a text (Scriptural meditation begins at 4:48.) Jesus advised his listeners--struggling fishermen, people living on the edge, without enough food for guests, not to worry about what they were going to eat. Which, of course, is still shiningly relevant today for many. However, today, with immense societal pressure to be slender, along with an obesogenic food environment, sugary and carby food everywhere, at every social occasion, Jesus’s counsel about not worrying abo...