Archives for July 2023

(The transcript to the recorded podcast meditation is below, here).

Persistent Prayer Turns Christ’s Silence, His “No,” and “Absolutely Not” to YES!

So, a Gentile Syro-Phoenician woman comes to Jesus, crying out,

“Lord, have mercy on me. My daughter is suffering terribly.” But

Jesus remains silent. Undeterred, the woman keeps crying out.

And Jesus snubs her: “I was sent only to the lost

sheep of Israel.” But she can’t believe “No” could be

his final word. “Lord, help me,” she says simply. And

then, a crushing rebuff. “It is not right to take

the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” But hitting

rock bottom makes your prayers strangely powerful. “Yes,

it is right, Lord,” she contradicts him, “Even dogs eat crumbs

that fall.” Dogs, never entitled, hungry, humble, grateful, happy.

And Jesus praises her dogged faith in his goodness and

power. Her faith catalyses the miracle she longs for. He

says, “Woman, you have great faith. Your request is granted.”

Never passively accept any apparently intractable situations.

Reality is infinitely malleable in the hands of God. We pray,

and people change, circumstances change. We change. So

keep praying until little drops of the kindness of God

soften and change the impossible situation and your heart.

So take your little mustard seed of mountain-moving faith in the

goodness of God, and pray, seeing the kind Jesus in your mind’s eye.

Continue praying, past God’s silence, his “No,” and “Absolutely Not,”

until Christ, charmed, says, “Yes. It’s time! Go, girl, go. This way.”

Dream big and wide like childless Abraham stepping outside,

dazzled by an immensity of stars, and believing God’s power

could give him as many descendants. But don’t waste your

passion and dream-energy. Pray for things that will bring you

joy, yes, but will also bless myriad others, creating something,

in Milton’s phrase, that the world will not willingly let die.

Each of Jesus’s prayers were not answered affirmatively; neither

will each of our requests be granted. We are not wise enough

to know what best to pray for. But prayer, incredibly, does change

things. So keep praying for the shimmering dream which makes

your heart burn and quiver; pray past apparent impossibility until

the heavens open, the Spirit descends, and you live and work

and create with God’s spirit energising and filling you. Amen.

(Matthew 15: 21-28)

If you’d like to read my previous recorded meditations, they are here.

If you’d like to follow these meditations the moment they appear, please subscribe to Christian Meditation with Anita Mathias at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts,

Amazon Music or Audible. And I would be very grateful for reviews and ratings!!

And, of course, I would love you to read my memoir, fruit of much “blood, sweat, toil and tears.”

Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India in the UK, and in the US, here, well, and widely available, online, worldwide 🙂

Grab Christ’s Hand When You Are Sinking

By Anita Mathias

Hi friends, I’ve recorded a podcast meditation, which I hope you’ll enjoy. Feedback welcome 🙂

Sometimes, the little boat of your life is tossed in

the darkness, in a storm-swept lake, far from shore,

It’s buffeted by waves, with the wind against it. And a dark

figure looms, walking on water, and you cannot see his face,

and you do not know his name, and you are terrified.

And in the encircling gloom, Christ always speaks the same

magnificent words, “Take courage. It is I. Do not be afraid.”

He comes to us in the darkness, a future that looks bleak,

with unsolvable relational difficulties or financial difficulties, or

when intellect, energy, and organisation feel puny, matched with

our dreams and calling. But it is Christ. Do not be afraid.

And Peter, the risk-taker, from an overabundance of love and

impulsivity, says, “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on

the water.” And Jesus speaks another of his great words, “Come.”

Jesus, the merciful, did not ask Peter to do something that

transcended the humanly possible and Peter’s faith, but

since Peter wanted to get to Jesus as quickly as possible, and to

do whatever Jesus did, he gives him permission to walk on water.

We sometimes yearn to do things for which we know we don’t

have the money, time, abundant gifting, or even the character.

Never begin them before you’ve prayed, “Lord, tell me to do it.”

If he says, “Come,” start tackling the impossibility, immediately.

And Peter walks on water, until he sees the almost visible wind,

is afraid, and begins to sink. Fear paralyses, sinks, and destroys.

And Peter prays a powerful prayer, “Lord, save me.” And

immediately, Jesus reaches out his hand and catches him,

scolding, “Oligopistos. You of little faith. Why did you doubt?”

And the wind dies down, and Peter learns to keep his eyes

on Jesus and his power when he attempts the impossible,

and to cry out for Jesus’s help when he begins to sink.

Help us, Jesus, you who control the wind and waves,

and all things, when we are sinking in the darkness,

and all seems impossible. Tell the wind to be quiet.

Take my hand, precious Lord. Lead me on. Let me stand. Amen.

How to Find Life-Changing Hidden Treasure

By Anita Mathias

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy, went and sold all he had and bought that field. Matthew 13:44

The Kingdom of God is within you, Jesus says, as

he suggests that making him the King of all our minutes

and activities is treasure worth trading everything for. It’s like

being in constant radio contact with Jesus, placing yourself

in the torrent of his love and wisdom and the power of his Spirit.

It’s promised deep peace, even amid direness, because we know

God’s power and goodness. It’s the Holy Spirit teaching us all

things, guiding our work and financial affairs, guidance that’s

brilliant, timesaving, and (a fringe benefit!) often economically beneficial.

Trading everything to follow Jesus, who said he’d live in us, as

a vine floods its branches, will, like literally selling everything

we own, take time. It happens inch by inch until the Spirit and Jesus

and his power and glory gradually invade every square inch of our lives.

And, progressively, everything will shift–the way we work, our

family relationships, friendships, what we read and watch,

the time we spend on exercise, diets, and food preparation,

on maintaining our homes and gardens, on prayer and scripture reading,

on church activities and volunteering, on social media and the news.

Some of us will spend less time on these things; others will spend more,

for we are each created with a unique shape and purpose and calling.

And what am I trading to live more in Jesus’s Kingdom? Well, Rick Warren,

of The Purpose-Driven Life, suggests that those who want to change

anything should begin by changing their bodies. So I am walking and

running while praying and listening to Scripture, gradually increasing mileage

so I don’t regain the 82 pounds I had lost. And I’m prioritising

decluttering and bringing order and beauty to my home and garden

while getting my goal steps and burning my goal calories.

It’s costly to follow Jesus, for sure, but far, far costlier to decide not to,

and instead chase what Tim Keller calls “counterfeit Gods:” “money,

the seduction of success, the power and the glory,” to climb

a cruel ladder which has no end and never satisfies for long.

Bill Bright, founder of Cru, describes his surrender to Christ

as abandoning his puny little plans, and embracing God’s

magnificent plans. Once done, he said, the future seemed brighter

than ever. As we invite Jesus into each square inch of our lives,

he promises that the things the unbelieving world runs after

will also be added to us. May it be so. Amen.

If you’d like to read my previous recorded meditations, they are here.

If you’d like to follow these meditations the moment they appear, please subscribe to Christian Meditation with Anita Mathias at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or

Amazon Music or Audible. And I would be very grateful for reviews and ratings!!

And, of course, I would love you to read my memoir, fruit of much “blood, sweat, toil and tears.”

Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India in the UK, and in the US, here, well, and widely available, online, worldwide 🙂