Focus

Let yourself become open to God and the knowledge that comes from the Word. Ask God for peace at this time.

Read

Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 (NRSV)

“Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
“So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
…
“And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Reflect

Do we really have any idea what it means not to “let your left hand know what the right hand is doing”? Is it possible to be so humble that this comes as second nature in every venture of our lives, especially when giving to God?

One of my favorite Neflix series is Call the Midwife. Set in the late 1950s and early 1960s, the show deals with the problems of a small, poor European community. Experiencing the growing pains of birth defects, birth control, the legality of abortion, and childbirth, the community binds together, lifting up one another each day for the onslaught of life that will come the next day.

One of the episodes dealt with a woman whose baby had died. In dealing with her grief, this woman served God by making sure that her church was spotless. After grieving for 22 years, she realized that as she had worked tirelessly so that others could worship comfortably, her heart was close to being healed. Yet it came as a surprise to her that others continuously complimented her for her hard work in the church when all she had felt was the grief.

I wonder if this woman’s story is what it’s like for one hand not to know what the other hand is doing. I wonder if it is possible for us to go about our daily lives serving God as if it were second nature while conducting the lives that are demanded of us by everyday circumstances.

Pray

Our Lord, give us a graceful, conscious love of others so that we may do your work. Amen

Go with God.