Monday September 2nd: Independence

He slipped through the crowd and walked away.

Luke 4: 16 – 30

I recently saw a picture with a tall young man standing in a doorway and the funny caption: “When your mom calls you to show off how big you’ve gotten.” As I laughed, I can remember my mom doing this to me. Growing up I was always referred to as the “daughter of” or the “sister of” and worked hard to make my own name in the world.

Even though the people were astonished with Jesus’ preaching and with everything they heard about Him doing in Capernaum, they still questioned “This is Joseph’s son, surely?” Jesus did not let this get Him down. He understood that He would never truly be accepted in His hometown.

We have recently celebrated our country’s Independence. I pray for everyone striving to achieve their own independence, that the noise and naysayers of our time will fail in throwing us off the cliff. Rather, I pray that we can walk away and become the person God wants us to be. Amen.