Nurturing Seeds
John 2:3 - When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
In the book of John, Jesus attends a wedding celebration where the wine runs out much too soon. Jesus’ mother intervenes and urges Jesus to act. In something that could come across as a silly extravagance, Jesus performs his first public miracle by turning water into wine. Mary, sensitive to what it means to be shamed within a community, intervenes to ensure the wedding host and servants can avoid embarrassment.
Mary plays a pivotal role in this miracle. Basically, she notices a need and plants a seed for action. She tells Jesus because she knows he is the right person to fix the situation. When Jesus is slow to act, she persists. Then Mary is the mediator encouraging the servants to act in obedience to whatever Jesus requires of them. Debie Thomas in Into the Mess says, “She acts as a catalyst, turning potential into action.”
Mary gives us a blueprint here. Thomas writes, “No matter how profound the scarcity, no matter how impossible the situation, we can elbow our way in, pull Jesus aside, ask earnestly for help, and ready ourselves for action.” Like Mary, we are the seeds equipped with the potential to bring action to the needs around us.
What need has caught your attention? If you could ask Jesus to intervene, what would you want to see happen? I invite you to elbow your way on in.
Father, you have invited us to come boldly to you and ask for help. So, God I bring this situation to you and ask that you do what only you can do. And while you are the ultimate fixer and comforter, ready me for action and show me what to do.
by Mitzi Myers