sit down

An interesting command to a hungry crowd of people:

Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?" And they said, "Seven, and a few little fish." So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.

Before we can be fed by the word of the Lord, we need to obey, sit down at His feet, and be fed.

water, wine, and obedience

When Jesus turned the water into wine, he showed the world that he can make something flavorful out of something tasteless--something from nothing. The water with no taste can be turned into wine--not just mediocre wine served at the end of the feast, but the good stuff.

There's just one catch--before we can let Him transform us into the good wine, we must do what His mother told the servants at the wedding:

"Whatever He says to you, do it."

If only we could hear that "still, small voice" once again...

concealment

One of the oldest questions for those struggling to believe in God is why God concealed Himself. If so many people are questioning God's very existence, why doesn't God simply reveal himself manifestly to everyone, so that no question remains?

I was thinking about this, and then I thought of this quote:

"Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking."

I am by no means going to answer my initial question definitively, but perhaps one reason God chooses to conceal himself is to truly test our character. If we had the feeling that someone is constantly watching our shoulder, perhaps we wouldn't do some of the things we choose to do (this applies to believing Christians as well). And we know that love forced is no love at all...