Lent Day 12 | 40 to Life

Hello Redeemer family, I’m Margaret Ryan and I am the Register for your vestry.  Welcome back to our 40 to Life daily reflections.  Today is the 14th day of Lent.

I want to talk about a passage from Isaiah Chapter 58.  Verse 6 of this chapter reads:

Is not this the fast that I choose:
to loose the bonds of injustice,
to undo the thongs of the yoke,

to let the oppressed go free,
and to break every yoke?

This reading was actually part of the lectionary for Ash Wednesday but I have chosen it for my reflection because it speaks to justice and injustice. Over the past few weeks, I have, as I’m sure you have, watched in horror as the people of Ukraine flee their homes and leave family members behind in search of safety for themselves and their children.  I have had the somewhat unique experience of directly supporting a dear friend as she watched and waited to hear from her family as they escaped Kharkiv.  They then made their way to the United States with only the clothes on their backs and their passports.  I hope that as we move through this Lenten season, you take time to reflect on the justices and injustices in our world and to pray for the people of Ukraine.