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Saturday, May 9, 2026

Today’s Daily Readings

From the PC(USA) Daily Lectionary

  • Morning Psalms: Psalm 92; 149
  • First Reading: Leviticus 23:23–44
  • Second Reading: 2 Thessalonians 3:1–18
  • Gospel Reading: Matthew 7:13–21
  • Evening Psalms: Psalm 23; 114

Reflection

In today’s reading from Matthew 7, Jesus offers one of his most challenging teachings: "For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it."

In a modern context, it is easy to interpret this "hard road" as a requirement for rigid perfectionism or exclusionary behavior. However, for everyday people, the hard road often looks like the messy, exhausting work of simply refusing to give up on one another.

The "broad road" is the path of apathy. It is the road where society writes off a teenager in a residential facility because their mistakes seem insurmountable. It is the path where we look away from a mother struggling with housing instability as she tries to stay connected to her child. The broad road suggests we should mind our own business, let "the system" handle the brokenness, and ignore those falling through the cracks of bureaucracy and insurance.

The narrow gate is fundamentally different. It is the choice to step into the "messy middle" of other people’s lives. It is the caseworker spending hours coordinating care for a child, the friend who listens to a neighbor whose life is unraveling, or the advocate who validates someone’s worth when they are drowning in negative self-talk.

Jesus further teaches that "every good tree bears good fruit." "Good fruit" is rarely a polished, problem-free life. More often, true Gospel fruit, patience, kindness, and relentless advocacy, is grown in the dark valleys mentioned in Psalm 23. It is found in the resilience of a family seeking healing and the grace of sitting with youth who are wrestling with their worst impulses to help them find solid ground.

When we accompany each other through the storms and build fires in the dark for those who are shipwrecked, we are walking the narrow road. Though it is difficult, it is the path that leads to life.

Prayer

Good Shepherd, you know that the paths we walk are often steep and fraught with obstacles. Give us the endurance to choose the narrow gate of compassion over the broad road of indifference. When our neighbors or we are navigating the chaotic, messy middle of life, help us to bear good fruit. Remind us that we do not walk the dark valleys alone, for your rod and your staff comfort us. Amen.