“Whatever”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Tuesday, January 7, 2025
John 2: 1-11 (Forward, p. 70) CEV p. 1101
That word, whatever, must be one of the most dynamic and life-changing words in all of the Holy Scriptures. It gives permission—and more—to whatever God wants to do with our lives or with the lives of others.
Here we see it at work in Mary and in the proceedings of a wedding in Cana of Galilee. I like to think of Mary as one of those interested friends or family members who step in to help out, or even, ‘to take charge’, in local community events. But maybe Mary was more than that; maybe she was an aunt of the bride or groom, someone who’d willingly stepped in, with the family’s consent and permission of course—or perhaps coerced--to make sure that everything went as planned. That she had been given that role would make sense given a couple of the circumstances. Firstly, she seems to be unusually aware of the behind-the-scenes activities, long before, it would seem, anyone else was aware of them. (In this case, knowing that they’d run out of wine.). And, secondly, she seems to have a certain amount of ‘clout’ with the servants, that they felt obliged to do as she said. In these ways, she comes across as someone quite remarkable.
However, that is not all. She is remarkable in several other ways as well. To start with, at the first sign of trouble she goes to Jesus. And she isn’t put off by His seeming dismissal. She trusts Him and trusts that He will do the right thing. And then she gives the servants a carte blanch to expressly do ‘whatever’ Jesus tells them to do.
So there’s that famous ‘whatever’. And so, here I have to ask: how many of us would be willing to give Jesus that permission, that freedom, to do in our lives whatever He wills. I wonder. But Mary was willing to do so, and look what happened: a miracle, the first of Jesus’ many signs pointing to who He was. But then, was this not a continuation of how things had began with Moses, with her ‘yes’ to the archangel Gabriel at the Annunciation! Maybe God needs our ‘yes’, our ‘whatever’, in the same way to do His work in our world? I think so.
Forward notes: “Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed him” (verse 11).
“As a person who enjoys a nice glass of wine, I find some pleasure in this first sign Jesus gave as a glimpse of his glory. I like to imagine Jesus enjoying the wedding festivities along with his friends and neighbors. I’m sure there was much laughter, dancing, drinking, and joy as the marriage celebration continued for several days, with Jesus heartily joining in.
“Then, Mary informs Jesus of a potentially embarrassing situation for the hosts, expecting her son to act. It seems this problem of not having enough wine could be solved any number of ways, but Jesus ultimately chooses to provide extravagantly for their need, both in quantity and quality. None of this is necessary, but all of it is a welcome surprise. This act gives us insight into Jesus and the work he came to do.
“Jesus is still at work in creation today, showing us both his glory and goodness so that we will believe, waiting to transform the water of our lives into the finest of wines.”
Moving Forward: “How has Jesus responded to your needs with extravagance? How have you been blessed beyond expectation?”