Looking Up in the Chaos

Date: Tuesday, May 5, 2026
Liturgical Context: Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter (Year A)
Lectionary Source: Revised Common Lectionary (Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Today’s Lectionary Readings

• Psalm 102:1-17
  An urgent, exhausted lament from one feeling overwhelmed by affliction, crying out for God to hear their distress.
• Proverbs 3:5-12
  A call to wisdom, urging the reader to trust entirely in God rather than relying on limited human understanding.
• Acts 7:44-56
  The account of Stephen’s final words before his martyrdom. Surrounded by a hostile crowd, he looks toward heaven and sees the glory of God.

Featured Scripture

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths."
— Proverbs 3:5-6

Associated Artwork

Title: The Stoning of Saint Stephen (1625)
Artist: Rembrandt van Rijn
Location: Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon, France

Rembrandt’s first signed painting uses dramatic light and shadow (chiaroscuro) to highlight the chaos and violence of the crowd. In the center of the darkness and the flying stones, a shaft of divine light illuminates Stephen’s face as he looks up, his expression fixed entirely on the heavens rather than the immediate threat surrounding him.

Pastoral Reflection

Current global headlines often mirror the exhaustion found in today’s Psalm. From devastating floods and wildfires to international conflicts and geopolitical tensions, the words of Psalm 102 resonate deeply: "Hear my prayer, O Lord; let my cry come to you. Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress."

Beyond global events, we carry personal "local headlines," the weight of family struggles, professional stress, the exhaustion of managing a household, and the quiet crises of those we love. When pressure mounts, the default human response is to attempt to fix everything ourselves, leaning heavily on our own insight and strength to navigate the mess. But we often can't see the pathway that lies ahead to where we want to go without some help.

However, Proverbs 3 offers a steady disruption to this impulse: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight."

Following this command is remarkably difficult when "the stones are flying." In the reading from Acts, Stephen is in the midst of a literal life-or-death crisis. Surrounded by a violent crowd, he does something counterintuitive: he looks up. Filled with the Holy Spirit, he redirects his gaze away from the chaos and toward the heavens, seeing the glory of God. He found his solid ground not by managing the situation, but by trusting the One who held him through it.

While we may not face the same stones Stephen faced, the spiritual reflex remains the same. When the news is overwhelming, or the daily grind leads to despair, we are invited to lift our eyes. We are called to stop relying solely on our own tired insight and to trust that even in the middle of the chaos, God is present and the heavens are open.

Prayer

Gracious God, we confess that when life becomes chaotic, we are quick to rely on our own strength and slow to trust in Yours. When the headlines overwhelm us and our own daily burdens feel too heavy to carry, help us to lift our eyes. Give us the grace to trust You with all our hearts, believing that You are with us in the chaos, gently making our paths straight. Amen.