{"id":20274,"date":"2022-12-06T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-12-06T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailchi.mp\/urc\/urc-daily-devotiontuesday-6-december-2022"},"modified":"2022-12-06T06:00:00","modified_gmt":"2022-12-06T06:00:00","slug":"urc-daily-devotion-tuesday-6-december-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trinitywimbledon.org\/index.php\/urc-daily-devotion-tuesday-6-december-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"URC Daily Devotion\u00a0Tuesday 6 December 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

St Mark 10.17-21<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. \u201cGood teacher,\u201d he asked, \u201cwhat must I do to inherit eternal life?\u201d \u201cWhy do you call me good?\u201d Jesus answered. \u201cNo one is good\u2014except God alone. You know the commandments: \u2018You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.\u2019\u201d \u201cTeacher,\u201d he declared, \u201call these I have kept since I was a boy.\u201d Jesus looked at him and loved him. \u201cOne thing you lack,\u201d he said. \u201cGo, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Reflection<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Becoming \u2018good\u2019 at anything – a sport, a skill, an action – takes practice. 10,000 hours, they say.  That\u2019s a lot of time to spend typing to get better at one thing, about 5 years at 6 hours per day.  It would have to be something you REALLY enjoyed doing.  And there will be many sacrifices along the way.  Imagine, as a young person, that you set your heart on becoming a professional footballer – someone, a scout or a teacher, maybe, has seen some talent in you and wants to encourage you\u2026 but warns that there will be sacrifices – no nights out with your mates, eating exactly the right things, not doing anything that might risk injury\u2026just to play for your club, let alone your country.<\/span><\/p>\n

And the journey starts when you\u2019re about 9 years old when you get scouted and sign for a club.<\/span><\/p>\n

How many young people dedicate a vast proportion of their youth and yet don\u2019t make it, despite all the effort, all the sacrifices? The number must be in the thousands. Maybe the hundreds of thousands. The young man in Mark\u2019s Gospel couldn\u2019t make the necessary sacrifices to achieve his goal. What have we given up on because we didn\u2019t make the cut?<\/span><\/p>\n

Prayer<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Gracious God, sometimes we fall by the wayside though no fault of our own, and sometimes it\u2019s entirely our fault. We pray for those whose dreams have been dashed, whose hopes have been shattered. Be with them, and us, as the pieces are picked up, reassembled, and new paths chosen.
Amen.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

St Mark 10.17-21 As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. \u201cGood teacher,\u201d he asked, \u201cwhat must I do to inherit eternal life?\u201d \u201cWhy do you call me good?\u201d Jesus answered. \u201cNo one is good\u2014except God alone. You know the commandments: \u2018You shall not … <\/p>\n

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