Guided reflection:

Jesus and the disciples were hungry and it was the custom to walk through a field and pluck off some grain. The Pharisees caught them… it was the Sabbath, and good Jews did not “work” on the Sabbath and plucking grain was considered work! From the outside looking in, it seems silly. But let me tell you, when someone is in a judgmental mood, what they point out as unacceptable is huge to them! I went to a workshop once that said that it was our job to be “Pharisee busters”… because folks with judgmental spirits want to force people into THEIR mold, they want rules to make people do what they think is right. Jesus was a Pharisee buster…the next time you hear yourself say “I cannot believe she calls herself a Christian…”; or “Who does he think he is trying to get away with…”; catch yourself… you might be setting yourself up as a Pharisee! Busted!

Guided prayer:

“O God, sometimes I act like a Pharisee! Sometimes I enter into conversations that sound a lot like a Pharisee. Help me guard my tongue and my heart... Teach me a thing or two about grace. Forgive me. Amen.”