Eastertide

May 14, 2023

Scripture Reading: John 14:15-21,

‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

‘I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.’

In the Middle Ages, Foundling Wheels were installed in some churches and orphanages as a place where a newly born infant could be placed if the child’s parents could not care for it for whatever reason. The parent could open a door on the outside wall of the building and place their child in a basket inside, which sat on a wheel. The parents closed the door, rang a bell, and left. A staff person at the facility, upon hearing the bell, would wheel the baby inside the building and welcome it to the facility’s care.

There are times in our lives when we feel hopeless and can see no way out of an impossible situation. God is always present and ready to take us into God’s arms and return us to wholeness. Our Foundling Wheel is prayer that opens the door to healing our souls.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for always being present to us even when we feel lost and alone. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.