January 1: Christ Blesses the Wedded Couple at Cana
♫ Music:
Day 32 - Wednesday, January 01
New Year’s Day Title: Christ Blesses the Wedded Couple at Cana
Scripture: John 2:1-10 (NKJV)
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
Poetry:
“Cana”
by Thomas Merton
Once when our eyes were clean as noon, our rooms
Filled with the joys of Cana’s feast:
For Jesus came, and His disciples, and His Mother,
And after them the singers
And some men with violins.
Once when our minds were Galilees,
And clean as skies our faces,
Our simple rooms were charmed with sun.
Our thoughts went in and out in whiter coats than
God’s disciples’,
In Cana’s crowded rooms, at Cana’s tables.
Nor did we seem to fear the wine would fail:
For ready, in a row, to fill with water and a miracle,
We saw our earthen vessels, waiting empty.
What wine those humble waterjars foretell!
Wine for the ones who, bended to the dirty earth,
Have feared, since lovely Eden, the sun’s fire,
Yet hardly mumble, in their dusty mouths, one prayer.
Wine for old Adam, digging in the briars!
CHRIST BLESSES THE WEDDED COUPLE AT CANA
In just three weeks I will be officiating Tanner and Sophie’s wedding. We spoke together a few nights ago, pouring over every detail of the ceremony. I wonder if I should have reminded them to have plenty of wine on hand.
Few occasions are as joyous as a wedding. Love is new, hope is young, and the future bright.
In Jesus’ day, the marriage supper was a full-on celebration, sometimes continuing for days. One difference being, the groom’s family, not the bride’s, provided the great feast to honor the couple. Running out of wine while the party was still underway would bring shame upon the generous hosts.
While Jesus might have been unsure of his role in this crisis, his mother was not. Instead of arguing, she stepped in to initiate a solution, whatever it would take.
Many meaningful themes and symbolic connections can be drawn from this glorious wedding miracle of Jesus turning water to wine, but the one I’d like us to look at today, this first day of a new year, is timing.
On the one hand, Mary’s timing is: We need wine NOW! In Yatskiv’s artwork we see Mary’s hands depicting her urgent request. On the other hand, Jesus’ take on it is: Mom, please leave me out of this. It’s not time for me to start doing miracles. It’s too soon.
Then we have the master of ceremonies declaring that the hosts have their timing all wrong. The best wine is usually served first, but they held it back until the last.
And thirdly (pun intended), the opening words to this narrative “on the third day” are likely referencing Jesus’ resurrection, and He hasn’t even begun His ministry yet.
What do we do with this?
Ecclesiastes 3:1 tells us that “for everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven...” and verse 11 expounds, “...God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” (NLT)
As we launch into this new year, it will bring us peace to remember that although we cannot see the whole scope of God’s plan from beginning to end, there is a plan. God really does have a purpose for the timing of every activity under heaven. Every activity under heaven.
Joy and celebration are coming, even for “old Adam, digging in the briars!” We are His beloved. He’s preparing a place for us right now, and the marriage supper of the Lamb is on His calendar. Whatever this year may bring, we can trust in His love, His timing, and His ways.
Prayer:
Dear Father, we ask for Your presence to go with us and before us into this new year. We will trust in your love for us, your ways, and your timing. May Your favor be upon us, our families, our children, and their children to a thousand generations.
Amen and amen!
Kay Vinci, M.Div.
Writer and editor
For more information about the artwork, music, and poetry selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab.
About the Artwork:
Wedding at Cana
Lyuba Yatskiv
2017
Acrylic, gilding, silvering on gessoed wood
38 x 50 cm
Private Collection
Jesus performed more than forty miracles during his earthly ministry. From healings to controlling the forces of nature to raising people from the dead, Jesus demonstrated his divinity through these supernatural miracles. The wedding at Cana records the first time Jesus publicly demonstrated his divine power—affirming his true identity as the Son of God and marking the beginning of his public ministry.
About the Artist:
Lyuba Yatskiv (b. 1977) belongs to a circle of Ukrainian artists from the city of Lviv in western Ukraine who are revitalizing the ancient art of iconography that was all but lost during a half century of Soviet persecution. These new Ukrainian icon painters use time-honored and traditional techniques, but they reinterpret the established images of canonical iconography into a style that resonates with modern viewers. A graduate of the renowned Department of Sacred Art of Lviv National Academy of Arts, Yatskiv’s style conforms more closely to the traditional Byzantine manner. The artist comments, “I would never start working with a prepared, predefined concept. It is a line of the drawing that is prompting the development of a certain image; one only needs to listen to it, feel its vivid motion, and subtle plastic nuances.” Since 2002 she has been a professor at the National Academy of Arts in Lviv, Department of Sacred Art.
https://artes-almanac.com/onovlennia-ikonopys-liuby-yatskiv/
http://iconart.com.ua/en/artists/artist-4/lyuba-yatskiv
https://www.iconecristiane.it/2017/12/10/lyuba-yatskiv/
About the Music: “The Blessing” (Radio Version)
Lyrics:
The Lord bless you and keep you.
Make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you.
The Lord turn His face toward you,
And give you peace.
Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen
The Lord bless you and keep you.
Make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you.
The Lord turn His face toward you,
And give you peace.
Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen
May His favor be upon you,
And a thousand generations.
And your family and your children
And their children, and their children.
May His favor be upon you,
And a thousand generations.
And your family and your children
And their children, and their children.
May His presence go before you
And behind you, and beside you
All around you, and within you,
He is with you, he is with you.
In the morning, in the evening,
In your coming, and your going,
In your weeping, and rejoicing.
He is for you, he is for you
He is for you, he is for you
He is for you, he is for you
He is for you, he is for you
Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen
May His presence go before you,
And behind you, and beside you,
All around you, and within you,
He is with you, he is with you.
In the morning, in the evening,
In your coming, and your going,
In your weeping, and rejoicing.
He is for you, he is for you
About the Composers: Chris Brown, Steven Furtick Jr., Cody Carnes, and Kari Jobe
Chris Brown (b. 1981) is the lead songwriter for Elevation Worship, the praise band for Charlotte, North Carolina–based megachurch Elevation Church. “O Come to the Altar,” which has risen to as high as number two on Billboard’s “Hot Christian Songs” list, is perhaps Brown’s most well-known song.
https://elevationworship.com/
Steven Furtick Jr. (b. 1980) is an American Baptist evangelical Christian pastor, and a songwriter for Elevation Worship. He is the founder and senior pastor of Elevation Church, based in Charlotte, North Carolina. At the age of sixteen, after reading the book Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire by Jim Cymbala, the pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, he felt called to pastor a church. Furtick received a B.A. in communications from North Greenville University and a Master of Divinity from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Furtick speaks at events and conferences all over the world.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Furtick
About the Composers/Performers: Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes
About the Composer/Performer:
Kari Jobe (b. 1981) is an American contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter. Since her first album in 2009, she has received two Grammy Award nominations and ten Dove Award nominations, six of which she won. Jobe established herself as one of the Christian music industry’s premier female vocalists with her Dove Award–winning, self-titled debut album. She has released three follow-up albums, and has been nominated for a number of additional prestigious accolades. For nearly two decades as a well-respected worship leader, Kari Jobe has been using her gifts to lead people into the presence of God. Originally from Texas and now residing in Nashville, she tours the country with her husband, Cody Carnes, and their two boys and they both serve at their home church, the Belonging Co. in Nashville, TN.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kari_Jobe
https://www.karijobe.com/
Cody Carnes (b. 1989) is a worship leader and songwriter whose passion is to create a meeting place for God and people with music. He spends most of his time traveling and leading worship with his wife, Kari Jobe Carnes. The couple have co-written numerous songs together, including "Closer To Your Heart," "The Garden," and "Lover Of My Soul," from her album The Garden, and "Let The Heavens Open," from the album Majestic. Carnes also wrote "The Cross Has The Final Word," a hopeful, declarative anthem about the overcoming power of Jesus' name. His debut album was released in 2017 with Capitol Christian Music Group.
About the Poetry & Poet:
Thomas Merton (1915–1968) was a Roman Catholic monk, poet, and prolific writer on spiritual and social themes and one of the most important American Roman Catholic writers of the twentieth century. After a year at the University of Cambridge, he entered Columbia University, where he earned both B.A. and M.A. degrees. Following years of agnosticism, he converted to Catholicism and entered the Trappist Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky. The Trappists are considered to be one of the most ascetic of the Roman Catholic monastic orders and it was there that Merton grew as a mystic, pursuing spiritual quests through his writing. Merton’s first published works were collections of poems: Thirty Poems (1944), A Man in the Divided Sea (1946), and Figures for an Apocalypse (1948). With the publication of the autobiographical Seven Storey Mountain (1948), he gained an international reputation. His early works are strictly spiritual, but his writings of the early 1960s tend toward social criticism, civil rights, pacifism, and nonviolence.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Merton
About the Devotion Author:
Kay Vinci, M.Div.
Writer and editor
Over the years, Kay has enjoyed writing for both adults and children. She has written for a variety of publications, including magazines and journals, and has also written a self-published children’s story. Kay graduated in 2011 with her M.Div. from Western Theological Seminary in Holland, MI. She enjoyed being part of the teaching team of her local church and developed a children's summer day camp curriculum. Retired now, she lives in Costa Mesa, California, near her children and grandson.