Christ is Risen!
This past week brought us to the middle of the Paschal period, which means we are half-way to Pentecost, and even closer to the Ascension of our Lord. I came across this hymn we sing on Saturday evening, for the 5th Sunday of Pascha, that reminded me of this fact…
The middle of the days has come,
Stichera Hymn for Saturday evening.
beginning with the Savior’s Resurrection,
and sealed by the holy Pentecost.
The first and the last glisten with splendor.
We rejoice in the union of both feasts,
as we draw near to the Lord’s Ascension:
the sign of our coming glorification.
In the Orthodox Church we celebrate Pascha, the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, for a complete 40 days! It is the Feast of Feasts! This year I venture to guess our celebratory period may go longer just because we want to celebrate with our church family. We are all waiting, with anticipation, for the churches to open back up again and for the chance to gather to celebrate this glorious feast TOGETHER!
The Gospel reading today, the 5th Sunday of Pascha, is John 4:5-42, the story of the woman at the well, in which Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?” Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw.”
This passage reminds me of a Psalm I recently posted about on Instagram, Psalm 63:1.
I created a photo quote for it to put on Instagram recently. In that post I highlighted the part in the verse that talks about “early will I seek Thee” and my need to remember to rise early each new day to seek Him. But then it goes on to say “my soul thirsteth for Thee, my flesh longeth for Thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is.”
I thirst and long for Him and only He can give me the living water that I need, “a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” I am like the woman at the well and ask Jesus to “give me this living water, that I may not thirst.”
Free download
Here is the PDF of the Psalm 63.1 verse. Print it to hang on your mirror or fridge or by your bedside stand to remind you to rise early and seek Him and He will be faithful and fill you with living water! Just click the photo for the PDF.
Call to Action
Let us kindle joy this week by remembering it is the Paschal season! Let us sing to our hearts content…
Christ is risen from the dead trampling down death by death and upon those in the tombs bestowing life.
Christ is risen from the dead trampling down death by death and upon those in the tombs bestowing life.
Christ is risen from the dead trampling down death by death and upon those in the tombs bestowing life.
I also encourage you to reach out to someone this week by mail, or even a phone call! There are so many who are completely alone in this quarantine time and just need to know someone is thinking about them. And most of those who are alone typically do not have much internet connection because they are usually those who are older. There are some in our parish who don’t do the live-streaming and don’t get on the internet at all. Our priest gathered a list of those who live alone and it was shockingly long. I’ve been trying to send notes in the mail as often as I can. I love letter writing!
Speaking of snail mail!
New in the Shop This Week
As mentioned above we are at the half-way point to Pentecost! What a wonderful way to celebrate Pentecost this year by sending a card in the mail. Available now, Pentecost cards with the Troparion Hymn on the front and an exclamation of blessing on the inside! Click on the photo to go to the Shop or visit my shop in the top menu.
Send a Card—Deliver a Smile
Also, as I mentioned earlier this week, I have been working on a set of cards that focused on Philippians 4:4-8! Those also are now available in the shop! Each set has 8 cards, 2 of each design with a sunset/sunrise theme!
Have a blessed week!
Christ is risen!
Kindler of Joy! 