Daily Devotion

This daily devotion is based on the Morning Office. It comes with selected readings from the appointed Psalm and another Scripture text, accompanied by reflections and prayers. There is an audio option. This devotion is suitable for personal and family devotions. It will be best to both read and listen. The link to the entire Morning Office today is provided at the end of each devotion. This project started on Ash Wednesday, 2025 and are offered for weekdays only.

13th March – Success and Solitude

Audio

Prepare

Today is Thursday, the 13th of March. It is the ninth day in the Season of Lent.  Let us begin by asking the God to bestow upon us the spirit of prayer:-

O Almighty God, you pour out on all who desire it the spirit of grace and of supplication: Deliver us, when we draw near to you, from coldness of heart and wanderings of mind, that with steadfast thoughts and kindled affections we may worship you in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Psalm Reading

The appointed Psalm for today is Psalm 115; reading from verses 1 to 3, and then 12a to 15:-

¹ Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,
    for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!

² Why should the nations say,
    “Where is their God?”
³ Our God is in the heavens;
    he does all that he pleases.

¹² The Lord has remembered us; he will bless us;
    …
¹³ he will bless those who fear the Lord,
    both the small and the great.

¹⁴ May the Lord give you increase,
    you and your children!
¹⁵ May you be blessed by the Lord,
    who made heaven and earth!

Scripture Reading

Today’s Scripture Reading is the famous story of how Jesus fed five thousand with just five loaves and two fishes. This story is recorded in all four gospels (Mark 6:30-47; Matthew 14:13-24, Luke 9:10-18 and John 6:1-15) and you are invited to consider the different accounts of the same event. Here we read from the account of John the Evangelist, at chapter 6 verses 11 to 15.

¹¹ Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. ¹² And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” ¹³ So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. ¹⁴ When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!”

¹⁵ Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

Reflection

How do we handle success? Especially if the success is public, perhaps also miraculous, and the miracle was worked through you, so those around you are about to come and (forcibly) make you king of some sort? 

Jesus withdrew; He did not stay to receive the accolades.  There was no post on X (formerly, Twitter), Instagram, or LinkedIn announcing the “achievement”; no long “thank-everybody-lest-they-get-upset” speeches, and no “well done”  back-slapping exercise. 

To be specific, John records “Jesus withdrew again“, suggesting that this withdrawal is not a one-off anomaly; it is not his first time, he did it again. 

What was the withdrawal for?  Prayer.  In solitude.  He did not even tolerate the company of the Twelve, his disciples. In the accounts of Matthew and Mark, Jesus actively sent his disciples away, out to sea on a boat.  Out of sight and out of earshot from everybody, Jesus sought communion with the Father and Spirit, in prayer.  And it wasn’t a 5, 10 minute affair. Both Matthew’s and Mark’s accounts (Matthew14:25 and Mark 6:48) suggest it went on till the early hours of next morning.

Right after his great success – the public and miraculous feeding of at least 5,000 people from just 5 loaves and 2 fishes, with 12 baskets full of leftovers – Jesus returned to the Father and Spirit, in solitude and prayer. 

How do you handle success? 

Prayer

Let us close this time with the Prayer for Quiet Confidence:

O God of peace, who has taught us that in returning and rest we will be saved, in quietness and confidence will be our strength: By the might of your Spirit lift us, we pray, to your presence, where we may be still and know that you are God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Link to today’s Morning Office