The Narrow Path

  Wednesday, 17 September, 2025 Psalm 40 1 Kings 11:1-25 Matthew 5:13-26 Observance: Hildegaard of Bingen, abbess & spiritual writer (d. 1179) Making The Lord His Trust (Psalm 40:4) Blessed is the man who makes     the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud,     to those who go astray after a lie! I heard once somewhere that one of the reasons for the effectiveness of the American military is that they have a procedure for just about everything. Whether it is cooking potato gems on a nuclear submarine, or deciding on a specific tactic in the midst of battle, there is a manual that says “if this happens, do that”. While we Christians are not American Navy cooks or Special Forces operatives, we are soldiers in God’s army. And so often there are circumstances where it would be nice if God would just tell us exactly what to do. Yet God works in a different way. He is sovereign and in compl...

  Tuesday, 16 September, 2025 Psalm 38 1 Kings 10:14-29 Matthew 4:23-5:12 Observance: Ninian of Galloway, bishop and missionary (d. c. 432) He Opened His Mouth (Matthew 5:2) And he opened his mouth and taught them. I wonder how many times you have gone over the Beatitudes – Jesus’ list of those who are blessed. And I wonder if it still gets to you every time that you do. It’s placement in St Matthew’s Gospel gives it a special sense of importance: the only other things Jesus has said so far are his rebuttal to Satan and his calling of St Peter. The narrative, having the anticipation built, moves up to this point: Jesus sat down, and opened his mouth, and taught them. If it were an American TV show, the moment would be artificially extended. We would hear tacky music designed to get the heart racing. The camera would jump between people’s faces, showing various expressions as the tension builds. Finally, the music stops, and all eyes are on J...

  Monday, 15 September, 2025 Psalm 37:1-17 1 Kings 10:1-13 Matthew 4:12-22 Observances: Holy Cross (transferred from September 14); John Oliver Feetham, bishop and bush brother (d. 1947) The Half Of It (1 Kings 10:6-7) And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard. To be pleasantly surprised is one of those little joys in life that make the living that much better. Pleasant surprises are lurking around every corner, ready to pounce if we have a heart prepared to receive them. I’m not sure if we could describe the experience of the Queen of Sheba as a pleasant surprise. She seemed a little more enthusiastic. But to be fair, she had just met King Solomon at his height, in all his typological glory. And so when...

  Saturday, 13 September, 2025 Psalm 35:1-17 1 Kings 9:15-28 Acts 28:17-31 Observance: Cyprian of Carthage, bishop and martyr (d. 258) They Will Listen (Acts 28:28) Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen. Poor St Paul, so dedicated to the idea of his people, the Jews, coming to faith in their Messiah. Having reached the beating heart of the Roman Empire, he finally gets his chance to preach in the synagogue there, but comes to the realisation that the ancient prophecies were right all along: God’s salvation is not just for them, but for the whole world. And aren’t we lucky that this is the case! As we read this alongside the historical account of 1 Kings, with all that stuff about the Gentiles being slaves under the people of Israel, who themselves were the soldiers, officials, commanders, captains and so on, we can get an idea of where St Paul might have been coming from. Th...

  Friday, 12 September, 2025 Psalm 31 1 Kings 9:1-14 Acts 28:1-16 Hidden Under Cover (Psalm 31:20) In the cover of your presence you hide them     from the plots of men; you store them in your shelter     from the strife of tongues. Secret gossip is always used for nasty information. But what would we call it when it was used for sweet words and comforting things? Reading through some of these Psalms makes one wonder if God keeps some of his redeeming work on the down low just so that it is more impressive. There is something about understated and unstoppable power. And when that power is the love of God and his protection of his people, it becomes almost elegant, or noble. Yes, our lives fall into trouble almost endlessly. Everywhere we turn there are problems that we cannot solve ourselves, and need to God to sort out for us. And God does sort them out for us – but he does them with finesse, in an u...

  Thursday, 11 September, 2025 Psalms 28; 29 1 Kings 8:54-66 Acts 27:33-44 Observance: Mother Esther CHN, founder of the Community of the Holy Name (Melbourne) (d. 1931) Carried In His Arms (Psalm 28:9) Oh, save your people and bless your heritage!     Be their shepherd and carry them forever. It is a reliable thing, that when two or more clergy are gathered together, they will begin talking about funerals. Don’t ask me why, we just can’t seem to help ourselves. A common theme in these discussions is the fact that we get so many funeral requests from people who have a faint yet persistent cultural memory of Christianity, meaning that even if the family hasn’t ever read the Bible, they still know “that poem about the shepherd” – Psalm 23. This idea of God as our shepherd is such a comforting concept, and the Bible is flush with it. Even in a Psalm like the 28 th , where the Psalmist is crying out to God for deliverance not only fr...