Walk and Pray — May 2 evening

For the walk. Meditation, reflection, turning toward God. No structure to assemble. Just sit with these.

The three texts — read slowly, aloud if you can

"For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by his life." — Romans 5:10

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a kernel of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it produces many seeds." — John 12:24

"All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation." — 2 Corinthians 5:18-19

The framing to carry

Christ is the subject of every load-bearing verb. Your weakness is named, not performed. Your reaching is real, not completed. He reached first. He reconciled while you were still his enemy.

Things to pray

• Pray for Evan by name.
• Pray that tomorrow you would be the man visibly under what you say, not the man performing it.
• Pray that the room would receive Christ, not you.
• Pray for the people who will sit at that table tomorrow — the ones you know, the ones you don't, the ones carrying things you cannot see.
• Pray for honesty in the gap between I have forgiven and I have not yet been answered.
• Pray that you would not take back what God has asked you to release while you wait.

Things to sit with

• What does Romans 5:10 do to you when you read it slowly? Where does it press on your conscience?
• While we were enemies. What does that mean about you? About Christ?
• The bread you're going to hand out tomorrow was a buried seed before it was bread. What does that do to you?
• What is the truest single sentence you can say about where you are right now — no names, no performance?
• What's the cost to you of standing up tomorrow that you didn't have to pay last week?
• Where in your own voice does the gap between I have forgiven and I have not yet been answered land?
• What's the single most honest sentence you can offer about what the cross cost — not exegetical, just true?
• Christ did not wait for your response before he died for you. What does that ask of you?

One line to keep in your chest

He fell into the ground alone — so that we could rise together.

Walk well. The work is good.