Mothers’ Union Devotion Wednesday 26th January 2022

So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptised, and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Acts 9. 17-19.

As our season of Epiphany draws to a close, we hear about a few more people who had personal revelations about who exactly Jesus was. On Tuesday we celebrate the moment when Paul changed from a persecutor of the followers of Christ into one of the most successful missionaries of all time. As the realisation of his encounter with the risen and ascended Jesus begins to grow, Paul literally sees the light when the scales fall from his eyes. It takes a little while to take in, the light from heaven, the voice calling his name, the instructions as to what he should do next, all take time to absorb. During this time, he is blinded and needs to be led into Damascus as a helpless man rather than travelling in the style of his usual privileged status.

Throughout our lives we have many Damascus moments in our faith. Times when Jesus calls to us through different senses, our eyes as we watch the beauty of light and creation, our ears as we hear the words of Scripture and the words spoken directly into our souls, our touch in the contact we have with loved ones and those in need in our communities. They can take time to process, time to wonder if they really happened or if we were imagining them, time to work out what Jesus is calling us to do, time to gather the strength to step out and follow our call. Often, we need someone like Ananias to come and confirm that our experience, our call from Jesus really happened. Someone who will support us as we begin our work. Someone who can help the scales fall from our eyes.

Maybe it is not us personally that is struggling with doubt as to whether an encounter with Jesus is real, whether a call to action did come from him. It may be us, therefore, that are asked to help someone’s scales fall from their eyes as we confirm to them that Jesus is really calling them personally to become baptised and work for the glory of his Kingdom.

With all my love and prayers

Revd Sandra