Reflection of the week

Posted Feb 24, 2016 in Faith

For the remainder of Lent, our Reflection of the Week will be drawn from the 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting, with permission from the creators.

Day 15 – “Forgiveness: The healing water”

with Racheal Kendino
Tribe/Language: Jawoyn people
Devotional written by Karen Schneider

Scripture:
Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for
they were bitter; therefore it was named Marah. So the people grumbled at Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” Then he cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree; and he threw it into the waters, and the waters became
sweet. There He made for them a statute and regulation, and there He tested them. (Exodus 15:22-25 NASB)

Watch Racheal Kendino’s story:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L0wGVhLOVs

Quote from sister Racheal Kendino:
“We started forgiving one another at home… And at the church we’ve started forgiving one another too… And we see the difference that the Lord brought. A revival broke out. Many families in this community of Manyallaluk came to the Lord and nearly almost the whole community went down for baptism. Jesus wants us to forgive other people as well as the ones that hurt us, and forgive ourselves too and we can see that healing begins in our life.”

Reflect:
Have you experienced the taste of bitterness? When unforgiveness takes root in our life, a tree of bitterness grows which yields bitter fruit. Where we thirst for "living water" we find Marah, bitter water that cannot nourish us. When Moses threw the tree into the water, his actions foreshadowed the day when another man, and another tree would change the course of human history…

As Jesus was crucified – nailed to a tree – the cross of Christ became the "tree" of healing that was thrust into the "waters" of our bitterness and unforgiveness, our brokenness and our separation from God and one another. Jesus proclaimed forgiveness to us all: “Father forgive them, they don’t know what they do.” (Luke 23:34) He made the "waters" of our lives sweet again, and asks us to release the same sweetness to others by forgiving them too.

Pray:
Let’s pray with Sister Racheal, “Daddy God, I pray for forgiveness for each and every one of us. We sing out to you that we want to see forgiveness going to happen everywhere, in our heart, in our church, in our family, in our nation and everywhere, so that there will be healing, in Jesus’ name.”

Action Steps:
Jesus asks us to forgive others, just as He forgave us. Ask Jesus today if there are any areas of your life where He can help you to release forgiveness.

Indigenous Australians are inviting all to participate in Forgiveness Week (in September 2016) in preparation for a National Solemn Assembly on Sunday 23 October, 2016.

The 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting resource was created by a group of people who feel Jesus wants Australia to listen to our Indigenous brothers and sisters. They travelled all over Australia filming people's stories of how Jesus' power had transformed their lives, families and communities.

Daily devotionals are provided during the 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting, and can be downloaded all at once, viewed each day from the website or delivered to your inbox.

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