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Can anything
good come out
of Nazareth?

Ouch! Isn’t that a great line from this Sunday’s gospel reading? (John 1:43-51) This is a story about Jesus calling those who will become his disciples. He calls Philip, who in turn shares the news about Jesus with Nathanael. At first Nathanael is skeptical about the claims that Jesus, from little old Nazareth, could possibly be the Messiah. However, it just takes one encounter with Jesus for Nathanael to know in his heart the truth of this claim.

Nathanael’s question, and his rather quick epiphany, sparked our good question of the week. How do you know who (or what) to believe these days? There is so much information and misinformation bombarding us every day, one must be discerning when it comes to discovering the truth. To further complicate matters, what is “truth” anyway – and according to whom? Not only do we have to consider our sources, but it’s important to explore a variety of sources, and to know ourown personal biases when it comes to interpreting what we hear.


Where does this take us in this “a-ha” season of Epiphany? When it comes to our own faith journey, what do we accept as truth about God’s call on our lives? The same rules apply about being discerning, but when it comes to spiritual matters, how do we account for those gut feelings or matters of the heart? We all answer calls in our lives by listening to those internal nudgings, as well as external messages from those we know and trust. Sometimes we are oblivious to the
validity of our own gifts until we hear an affirmation coming back to us.

I invite you to take some time to consider what you are being called to do and be this Epiphany season. Where do your gifts intersect with the needs around you in community? Can anything good come out of . . . Red Deer? Absolutely!