Praise God.
Praise be to Jesus Christ — now and forever.
Come, Holy Spirit… fill us with the joy of your presence. Amen.
A story to begin
This week I read about a freshman running back at LSU. He was arrested because two young men wanted for a felony were found in his dorm room. He said he didn’t know they were wanted — he’d been away at fall football camp.
I’m not here to judge his heart. I’m struck by this simple truth: how quickly one room can change the direction of your life.
It took me back to my days in the athletic dorm at NLU. All the male athletes lived in two buildings. Graduate assistants were on each floor to enforce curfew and keep us in line. And yet, with all that structure, sin still found its way in. Some things might even have been criminal.
If it hadn’t been for the spark of faith from my parents’ example, and a few friends on fire for Christ, I could have gone the wrong way too. I can still hear them: “Don’t go there. Don’t go in that room. Don’t hang out with those guys — you could get in trouble.” They weren’t judging me; they were saving me. They were my Ebed-melechs — like the friend God sent to Jeremiah.
The word of God today
Jeremiah spoke God’s truth, and it cost him. He was thrown into a cistern — no water, only mud — and he sank into the muck. But God sent an unlikely ally, Ebed-melech, to pull him out. The psalm says, “The Lord heard my cry… He drew me out of the pit, out of the mud, and set my feet on rock.” Faithfulness doesn’t mean we’ll never land in a pit. It means God will not abandon us there. And often his rescue comes through people we least expect.
Hebrews urges us: “Lay aside every burden and sin. Run with endurance. Keep your eyes on Jesus.” The race of faith isn’t about speed; it’s about steady trust. Jeremiah endured the cistern. The psalmist endured the waiting. Jesus endured the cross “for the joy set before him.” The ground may be muddy. The air may be heavy. The call is the same: keep going.
In the Gospel Jesus says, “I have come to set the earth on fire.” Not a cozy campfire, but a purifying blaze that burns away what’s false and forces a choice. A false peace says, “Just go along. Keep the room comfortable.” Jesus’ fire says, “Choose the truth. Let it refine you — even when it costs you.”
Three rooms we all enter
The company we keep: Every dorm, kitchen table, and group chat is a place of formation. People either pull us toward the mud or lift us to the rock. It takes humility to leave a room that’s wrong — and courage to be the one who says, “Come on… let’s go.”
The voice that leads: Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice… and they follow me.” There’s a difference between what is loud and what is true. Keep close the voices — your “cloud of witnesses” — that steady you and help you hear the Shepherd.
The fire that shapes you: If the “fire” in your heart only comforts but never challenges, it might not be Jesus’ fire. His fire makes love real by burning away what enslaves us.
A path for this week
- Name your rooms: Which places — physical, digital, and interior — lead you closer to Christ? Which pull you away?
- Find your Ebed-melech: Identify one friend who can pull you up when you’re stuck — and be that friend to someone else.
- Build your cloud of witnesses: Keep close the people and saints who point you to Jesus. Let their stories steady your steps.
- Pray Psalm 40: Inhale — “Lord…” Exhale — “…come to my aid.” Use it at the doorway of any room you enter.
- Fix your gaze on Jesus: Even two minutes of stillness a day can re-center your heart.
Bringing it home
Every day — in classrooms, job sites, locker rooms, and living rooms — we step into rooms that will shape us. Some are muddy pits disguised as freedom. Some are solid rock hidden in small, quiet choices.
The Good Shepherd is speaking. He is sending allies. And his fire is already burning — not to destroy you, but to refine you into who you truly are in him.
Lord, come to our aid. Draw us out of every pit. Set our feet on the rock. Put a new song in our mouths. Give us holy friends, and the courage to be holy friends. Fix our eyes on Jesus, and let your fire burn away everything that is not love. Amen.
Go now and live with a clean heart and a generous spirit. Let your life speak of Jesus — in every word you speak, every step you take, and every act of love you offer.
Praise God. Praise be to Jesus Christ — now and forever. Amen.
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