Meditation of the Day

What a tender moment!

It is a final farewell from the great apostle Paul, who had not only founded
the church at Ephesus but lived among the new believers for three years.
During that time, God did extraordinary miracles through Paul. As a result,
the gospel continued to spread "with influence and power" (Acts 19:20).

However, the Ephesian elders were not crying in admiration of Paul's
accomplishments. Rather, they shed tears of affection for a brother. And
Paul, in turn, was concerned not for the continuation of his ministry but
for the survival of "the flock?. that [God] acquired with his own blood"
(Acts 20:28), especially "the weak" (20:35).

The church in Ephesus had born leaders like Apollos (Acts 18:24-28)-quick
studies whose keen minds grasped the significance of Paul's message.
Teaching such converts must have been very gratifying for Paul. However, his
attention here seems to be on those at the other end of the spectrum, the
humble and lowly who enjoy a special relationship with the Lord.

Every community, every congregation, even every family has its own "weak"
members. Through whatever combination of genetics, upbringing, sin, and just
plain hard luck, it is unlikely that they will ever be able to take care of
themselves adequately. And these are the ones Paul singled out for special
attention, for he knew the fundamental precept of the gospel that those who
are more graced should care for those who are in need-not take advantage of
them or ignore them.

Such a philosophy goes against our human nature. Those who move quickly find
it irritating to slow down for those who lag behind. It can be hard for
someone with a quick mind to have to re-explain things to someone who just
doesn't get it. Instead of putting ourselves in their shoes, we tend to
imagine them in ours: "If that happened to me, I would surely have handled
it better." But when we do this, we exercise the judgment that belongs to
God alone and fail to extend the mercy of God-a mercy that belongs to the
strong and weak alike.

"Jesus, pour out your grace on your poor and needy brothers and sisters. Let
their cry pierce my heart. Show me how I can be your arms to encourage them
and lift them up."

Psalm 68:29-30, 33-36; John 17:11-19