The third Friday of Lent
LITURGICAL THEME OF THE DAY: : Anglicans especially will find it interesting that on the Eastern Orthodox Calendar is commemorated today St. Aristobulus of the Seventy, first Bishop of Britain (1st c.) . Tradition holds that he was born in Cyprus and was the brother of the Apostle Barnabas who aided St. Paul (and who mentions him in Romans 16:10). Aristobulus was commissioned and sent out landing in Britain where he endured terrible torments, misfortunes and malice from the people They were without mercy, dragging him through the streets, mocking him. But in the end this holy man came to success by the power of the grace of God. He enlightened the people, baptized them in the name of Christ the Lord, and established churches.
MEDITATION OF THE DAY: In these final section so of Genesis this drama of Jacob and his 12 sons is playing out. Jacob knew he could not stay in Canaan, or his whole family would starve to death. He also knew that Joseph was waiting for him in Egypt, which should have been a big enticement for Jacob to make this move. However, it still required him to pull up all of the stakes, gather all of his clan together, and head out from a place he could call his own, and head for a place that was new and foreign to him. Pharaoh was very kind and gracious to Joseph’s family. He gave them the best land in Egypt to settle in and pasture their flocks. Joseph presented five of his brothers and his father to Pharaoh, and then Jacob blessed Pharaoh. This is one of those stories in the Bible that seems like it almost has a fairy tale ending. However, let us not lose sight of the fact that the Egyptians valued their physical salvation so much that they gave up their money, their material goods, and even themselves to Joseph.
It should not be lost upon us in this age that these are the terms which God has laid down for us to have eternal life: unconditional surrender. We must come to the point of realizing that our condition is terminal, that we are facing death. And we must place our entire future in the hands of Jesus Christ just as the Egyptians trusted in Joseph. We must surrender every element of self-sufficiency, everything of value, and rely solely upon Jesus Christ May God enable you to trust in Him for our salvation.
PRAYER OF THE DAY: Lord Jesus, may everything I do begin with You, continue with Your help, and be done under Your guidance.
May my sharing in the full life in you free me from my sins, and make me worthy of Your healing. May I grow this day in Your Love and Your service, and become a pleasing offering to you; and with You to Your Father. Amen
ANCIENT WISDOM/PRESENT GRACE: “You cannot please both God and the world at the same time. They are utterly opposed to each other in their thoughts, their desires, and their actions”. – St. John Vianney, The Cure’ of Ars
LENTEN DISCIPLINE– Mindful that some live in a land of plenty and others live in a land of scarcity, commit today’s meal monies to Food for the Hungry or Food for the Poor now and through the Fridays of Lent.