Today’s reading is John 12:20-36. What I find interesting here is that the reading begins with people who were on their way to ‘the festival’ telling Phillip they wanted to see Jesus. Jesus then speaks to his disciples and the crowd and at the end of the reading, Jesus hides from them.

Odd to think that Jesus would hide himself from anyone, isn’t it? Might make him appear shy, weak, cowardly, even selfish? Those are some things I have heard some people say about Jesus throughout the years. But that’s not what his hiding was about at all. He went away to quiet places often to spend time with the Father in prayer. This is something he modeled often to his disciples. It’s where he found peace and calm in the midst of turmoil, it’s where he found strength, being with himself in the presence of God. We don’t do this often enough, do we? No, we attend conferences and banquets and like to see the famous speakers. Not Jesus, he wasn’t a crowd follower, nor a crowd-pleaser and he wasn’t interested in training his disciples to be one of those two things either. Jesus was still modeling to his disciples what it took to serve God.

Some of the important words that Jesus spoke to the crowd and disciples are in verse 26. They are words about serving Jesus and serving God and being with them. Have you ever thought about hiding somewhere with Jesus so that you can be strengthened? This is what Christian retreats are all about. Unfortunately, we don’t teach people that going away to a quiet place to hide with God for awhile is an act of service. How often have you ever thought that being quiet with Jesus, to hear from God and receive the Holy Spirit, was an act of service to God in Christ?

You might know the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus came to their house one time. Martha was busy in the kitchen preparing a meal for Jesus, Mary left the kitchen to be with Jesus. When Martha complained, Jesus told Martha that Mary had chosen the better part. I wonder if Martha realized that Mary was actually serving Jesus too. Listening is a precious service isn’t it? Everyone wants to be heard, to be listened to. Rarely do we really want to listen to the Living Word instead of people. In 1st Samuel 3:7-11 there is a story about a person who didn’t know the Lord yet who said he would listen. Even those of us who know the Lord, need to do the same.

Let us pray,

Lord, we confess that we are far too often drawn to worldly concepts and people and rarely do we spend enough time hiding with you. Please forgive us not going into our prayer closets to hear from you, too often we are there only to talk to you instead of being with you and serving you by listening. Please help control our minds and tongues and open our ears to strengthen our hearts and souls. Help us to schedule a time of retreat sooner, rather than later. We ask this so that we may become better servants and glorify you in this generation. AMEN