Tuesday of Holy Week

Psalm 71:1-14 • Isaiah 49:1-7 • 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 • John 12:20-36

As I read the Scripture passages assigned for today, John 12:24 is the verse that drew me back to it again and again:

Unless a wheat grain falls into the earth and dies, it remains only a single grain: but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.

New Jerusalem Bible

This reminded me of an anthem which a college classmate of mine, Natalie Sleeth, had composed.

HYMN OF PROMISE

In the bulb there is a flower; In the seed, an apple tree;
In cocoons, a hidden promise; Butterflies will soon be free!
In the cold and snow of winter, There’s a spring that waits to be,
Unrevealed until its season, Something God alone can see.

There’s a song in every silence, Seeking word and melody;
There’s a dawn in every darkness, Bringing hope to you and me.
From the past will come the future; What it holds, a mystery.
Unrevealed until its season, Something God alone can see. 

Alleluia 

In our end is our beginning; In our time, infinity.

In our doubt there is believing; In our life, eternity.
In our death, a resurrection; At the last, a victory.
Unrevealed until its season; Something God alone can see.

Betty Kerner