You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.
On the face of it, this devil’s bargain is for the birds:
Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
Who on earth would toss himself off a high tower to see if God will protect him? Yet don’t we often take lesser risks with big consequences? “Sure, cancer and smoking are highly related, but it won’t get me…” “Sure, the doctor said if I keep on getting fries with everything I’m headed for quadruple bypass, but what I eat today is okay…” Or, “Sure, pesticides kill bees and birds and marine wildlife, threatening the worldwide food supply, but it won't hurt if I treat my lawn…”
Feeling safe and protected is important to most of us. Yet the further away dangerous consequences are, the more risks we seem to take. Is this one of the ways we fall prey to the temptations of the Enemy? Maybe… Christian belief says that the devil desires to draw us away from the love of God. Often God is the first one we blame when bad things happen, because we forget human complicity, and because we may believe we have an unspoken contract with God guaranteeing our safety. Dig yours out of the file and check it – God never signed it. God promises us presence and power and peace in all circumstances, not protection.
I understand how facile this can sound if we think of people in Ukraine or Gaza or Sudan – or Minneapolis – and I don’t wish to undervalue the very real desire for life and safety. I share it. I’m just trying to remember there’s a bigger story. When security becomes our objective, we often try to get it for ourselves, turning away from God’s provision. And why not, if God hasn’t promised to protect us?
Well, because we gain a deeper gift in the relationship when we decide to trust God with all that we cannot control. This temptation the devil poses to Jesus is really about trying to control our circumstances. What do you most need to control? Can you in prayer today entrust – to the extent you’re able – the people and things you value most to God’s care, knowing you can’t keep them safe from everything, and trusting in God’s love? See how far you can extend your trust today, and then see if you can stretch a little further in ceding control tomorrow.
As we claim the fullness of our identities as beloved of God and chosen in Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit, we can move past a focus on security and live from an eternal perspective. From that vantage point, though what happens in this life matters a great deal, and when others are hurt, we hurt, we also see that this life is not the end of all things. Rather, for Christ followers, it is the beginning, the training zone, the love lesson.
That perspective doesn’t change our circumstances; it transforms the way we live them. Not a bad reminder on a day when many of us will hear the words, "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return."
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
2-17-26 - Hunger
You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.
What were the temptations that Jesus faced in the desert? This year we hear Matthew’s version, which begins simply: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.” Ya think?
After Jesus has spent over a month fasting and praying, and perhaps fending off temptations we don’t know about, the devil brings on the big guns. He begins with the most obvious area of need – physical hunger: The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Jesus did not refuse because he wasn’t hungry, nor because his power was limited – at other times, he readily commands molecules, plants and animals. I believe he was unwilling to employ the power he possessed on a party trick or to prove his identity. That power in him – which, by faith, is also in us, when we but trust it – is connected to the will of the Father. Maybe Jesus was unwilling to try to bend the will of God to this end for an audience and purpose so unworthy of it.
Once again, the temptation begins with an attempt to undermine the target’s sense of self: “If you are the Son of God…” Jesus is too smart to fall for it. We aren’t always so confident. If we remembered who we are, and whose we are as beloved children of the Living God, we might not be so prone to taking matters into our own hands or falling into patterns destructive to ourselves and others.
Our appetites are an area in which we are most vulnerable to making choices that are not life-giving. Today let’s take stock of how our perceived need for some things can become distorted and cause us to turn away from the Life of God and toward things we think will fill us. In "some things” I include food, alcohol, sex, work, power, screen time, relationships, affirmation, productivity, accomplishment – even exercise can become excessive if our motives are unhealthy.
It’s not the “what,” or even the “how much,” so much as “why do I need this,” and “how much of my energy goes into craving this, securing it, consuming it.” If this is an area of distorted need in our lives, we can feel somewhat empty as soon as we've finished that cycle.
How do we interrupt the cycle when it hits us? We might use Jesus’ words, substituting our need in the blank: “One does not live by alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” We might ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with God’s presence so we don’t hunger for things that can’t fill us. We might ask Jesus to sit with us and give us his peace until temptation subsides..
This may not be a welcome suggestion on a day when many of us will gorge on pancakes at church, but perhaps tomorrow might we even dare to sit with our hunger or desire or need and not rush to fill that empty place? It's important to feel the feelings that come from that emptiness. Certainly our Good News tells us that God shows up in empty spaces in pretty amazing ways.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
What were the temptations that Jesus faced in the desert? This year we hear Matthew’s version, which begins simply: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.” Ya think?
After Jesus has spent over a month fasting and praying, and perhaps fending off temptations we don’t know about, the devil brings on the big guns. He begins with the most obvious area of need – physical hunger: The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Jesus did not refuse because he wasn’t hungry, nor because his power was limited – at other times, he readily commands molecules, plants and animals. I believe he was unwilling to employ the power he possessed on a party trick or to prove his identity. That power in him – which, by faith, is also in us, when we but trust it – is connected to the will of the Father. Maybe Jesus was unwilling to try to bend the will of God to this end for an audience and purpose so unworthy of it.
Once again, the temptation begins with an attempt to undermine the target’s sense of self: “If you are the Son of God…” Jesus is too smart to fall for it. We aren’t always so confident. If we remembered who we are, and whose we are as beloved children of the Living God, we might not be so prone to taking matters into our own hands or falling into patterns destructive to ourselves and others.
Our appetites are an area in which we are most vulnerable to making choices that are not life-giving. Today let’s take stock of how our perceived need for some things can become distorted and cause us to turn away from the Life of God and toward things we think will fill us. In "some things” I include food, alcohol, sex, work, power, screen time, relationships, affirmation, productivity, accomplishment – even exercise can become excessive if our motives are unhealthy.
It’s not the “what,” or even the “how much,” so much as “why do I need this,” and “how much of my energy goes into craving this, securing it, consuming it.” If this is an area of distorted need in our lives, we can feel somewhat empty as soon as we've finished that cycle.
How do we interrupt the cycle when it hits us? We might use Jesus’ words, substituting our need in the blank: “One does not live by alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” We might ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with God’s presence so we don’t hunger for things that can’t fill us. We might ask Jesus to sit with us and give us his peace until temptation subsides..
This may not be a welcome suggestion on a day when many of us will gorge on pancakes at church, but perhaps tomorrow might we even dare to sit with our hunger or desire or need and not rush to fill that empty place? It's important to feel the feelings that come from that emptiness. Certainly our Good News tells us that God shows up in empty spaces in pretty amazing ways.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
2-16-26 - Temptation
You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's Hebrew Bible reading is here.
The first Sunday in Lent is nearly upon us – time for the story of Jesus being tempted by the devil in the wilderness. This event comes on the heels of Jesus’ baptism, and is presented as a necessary step as he prepares for his mission to reconcile humanity to the God from whom we had become estranged, and to make known to the world God's power and love. Why was Jesus led by the Spirit into the desert? Did he need to know his adversary? Did he need toughening up? Did the Son of God have to prove his sinlessness? Whatever the objective, this was not a retreat; he went to be tested.
We’ll get into Jesus’ forays with the tempter as the week progresses. Today, let’s talk about temptation itself. How does it work, and why are we vulnerable to it? Our tradition has a “root story” to explain it, the story of First Man and First Woman in the Garden of Eden. In this ancient mythic story woven to explain the disconnect between Creator and creation, we see some classic temptation tricks wielded to great effect:
The first Sunday in Lent is nearly upon us – time for the story of Jesus being tempted by the devil in the wilderness. This event comes on the heels of Jesus’ baptism, and is presented as a necessary step as he prepares for his mission to reconcile humanity to the God from whom we had become estranged, and to make known to the world God's power and love. Why was Jesus led by the Spirit into the desert? Did he need to know his adversary? Did he need toughening up? Did the Son of God have to prove his sinlessness? Whatever the objective, this was not a retreat; he went to be tested.
We’ll get into Jesus’ forays with the tempter as the week progresses. Today, let’s talk about temptation itself. How does it work, and why are we vulnerable to it? Our tradition has a “root story” to explain it, the story of First Man and First Woman in the Garden of Eden. In this ancient mythic story woven to explain the disconnect between Creator and creation, we see some classic temptation tricks wielded to great effect:
- Divide and conquer. The tempter doesn’t approach both humans – he starts with the woman.
- Distort reality. The serpent asks the woman, “Did God say not to eat of any tree?,” when God had said they could eat of every tree, except one.
- Undermine your target’s sense of identity. When the serpent contradicts God’s instructions, he causes the woman to question God’s goodness and authority, and her place in that relationship.
- Make disobedience appealing – Chances are, they wouldn’t have flouted God’s instructions for a wormy, overripe piece of fruit.
- Get an accomplice. The woman is quick to invite the man to join her transgression, and he puts up no fight.
This is pretty much how temptation works, in our lives - and in advertising. If we want to stay grounded in the goodness and love we are offered as children of God and followers of Christ, we need to get hip to the wiles of the evil one and say, “No thanks,” when temptation comes along. Of course, that's over-simplified; sometimes the temptation seems to originate in our own hearts and minds. That’s a mystery for another day – and for the rest of our lives.
Today, how about we think through the last time we submitted to temptation to do or say something that was not in our best interest or harmful to another, whether it was consuming more than we needed, or passing along a tidbit of gossip, or indulging in some judgment about someone. Break down the process if you can, and see where you might tighten your defenses. And think of a time when you resisted and stayed true to yourself and to God.
The point of this exercise is not to feel bad about ourselves – we are vulnerable because we are alive and have been given the gift of free will, to choose and choose again. Reflection can help us become more aware of how temptation works on us, so we are able to develop strategies for resisting it.
At Jesus’ baptism, he heard God’s voice proclaim, “This is my son, whom I love.” Our best strategy is to remember that we are beloved of God, and that God doesn’t turn away from us no matter how often we stumble. God’s forgiveness and mercy abound. That’s the best defense of all.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
Today, how about we think through the last time we submitted to temptation to do or say something that was not in our best interest or harmful to another, whether it was consuming more than we needed, or passing along a tidbit of gossip, or indulging in some judgment about someone. Break down the process if you can, and see where you might tighten your defenses. And think of a time when you resisted and stayed true to yourself and to God.
The point of this exercise is not to feel bad about ourselves – we are vulnerable because we are alive and have been given the gift of free will, to choose and choose again. Reflection can help us become more aware of how temptation works on us, so we are able to develop strategies for resisting it.
At Jesus’ baptism, he heard God’s voice proclaim, “This is my son, whom I love.” Our best strategy is to remember that we are beloved of God, and that God doesn’t turn away from us no matter how often we stumble. God’s forgiveness and mercy abound. That’s the best defense of all.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
2-13-26 - Witnesses
You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
How nonchalant that sounds, “So, listen, guys, don’t say anything to the others about this until after, you know, I've been raised from the dead…” Say, what? Raised from… What?
Why do you suppose Jesus invited these three on this little retreat up the mountain? I have my theories: I think he wanted them to see more fully who he truly was, the divine identity which his humanity partially obscured. For a moment that veil was lifted and his “God-essence” shone through. Jesus needed them to see that to help them endure the trials he knew were coming, for him and for his band of followers. And he needed witnesses who could testify later, after his resurrection, when the conspiracy theorists and 1st century “truth-ers” and the “he didn’t really die” people got into the act. He needed three witnesses who could say what they’d seen, and what they’d heard.
And testify they did. In his second letter, Peter wrote, “We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.”
People who were determined not to believe may not have been swayed – but the eyewitness testimony from three leaders of integrity no doubt shored up the faith of many inclined to accept the Good News of resurrection life, and encouraged the movement of Jesus followers in the church's early months and years.
It’s not enough for us to be open to encounters with the living God, which I absolutely believe God desires for us. We also need to tell our stories, even at the risk of derision or doubt. We can give voice to our experiences of God, or to words we believe we have received from the Spirit. Such revelation can and should be measured against the revelation of Scripture, and confirmation from other believers, and ultimately by what fruit it bears in your life and ministry. But don’t keep quiet – somebody needs to hear your story; somebody needs to have their own story confirmed by hearing about yours; somebody needs that little nudge to take the step into faith in Jesus Christ.
Is there a “God-story” from your life that you haven’t told anyone, or haven’t told for a while? Recall it for yourself; even write it out, recover the details. And then ask the Spirit to lead you to someone who needs to hear that story. I believe it’ll happen. (Then you’ll have another story to tell!)
As Peter continued, “So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”
Sometimes we are called to be that lamp shining in a dark place. Speak up.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
How nonchalant that sounds, “So, listen, guys, don’t say anything to the others about this until after, you know, I've been raised from the dead…” Say, what? Raised from… What?
Why do you suppose Jesus invited these three on this little retreat up the mountain? I have my theories: I think he wanted them to see more fully who he truly was, the divine identity which his humanity partially obscured. For a moment that veil was lifted and his “God-essence” shone through. Jesus needed them to see that to help them endure the trials he knew were coming, for him and for his band of followers. And he needed witnesses who could testify later, after his resurrection, when the conspiracy theorists and 1st century “truth-ers” and the “he didn’t really die” people got into the act. He needed three witnesses who could say what they’d seen, and what they’d heard.
And testify they did. In his second letter, Peter wrote, “We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.”
People who were determined not to believe may not have been swayed – but the eyewitness testimony from three leaders of integrity no doubt shored up the faith of many inclined to accept the Good News of resurrection life, and encouraged the movement of Jesus followers in the church's early months and years.
It’s not enough for us to be open to encounters with the living God, which I absolutely believe God desires for us. We also need to tell our stories, even at the risk of derision or doubt. We can give voice to our experiences of God, or to words we believe we have received from the Spirit. Such revelation can and should be measured against the revelation of Scripture, and confirmation from other believers, and ultimately by what fruit it bears in your life and ministry. But don’t keep quiet – somebody needs to hear your story; somebody needs to have their own story confirmed by hearing about yours; somebody needs that little nudge to take the step into faith in Jesus Christ.
Is there a “God-story” from your life that you haven’t told anyone, or haven’t told for a while? Recall it for yourself; even write it out, recover the details. And then ask the Spirit to lead you to someone who needs to hear that story. I believe it’ll happen. (Then you’ll have another story to tell!)
As Peter continued, “So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.”
Sometimes we are called to be that lamp shining in a dark place. Speak up.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
2-12-26 - Be Not Afraid
You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.
This is how I understand Jesus' transfiguration: that in this moment he is revealed as pure light, an energy form that radiated brightness. Whatever the cause, the effect was surely splendid, and probably terrifying. And to deepen the scary, it was followed by the appearance of two dead people, conversing as if alive. But none of this seems to frighten the watching disciples; Peter’s only reaction is to want to build three shelters so they can hang out together.
Yet, when a bright cloud comes over them, with a voice in it, suddenly they’re petrified: While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.
We can absorb unusual experiences until there is too much “unusual” and our circuits overload. Or were the disciples fine as long as they could see – but when their sight was obscured by a cloud that spoke, then they panicked? Or was it that they knew in their spirits that God was speaking to them – and they could hear with their ears? OR was it what that voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” They must have heard the stories about Jesus’ baptism, when a voice from heaven was heard to say almost the same words. Were they overcome by fear because now it was unmistakable – that Jesus was in fact God's Son, holy, divine? Now there was no going back?
True movements of God that we experience with our physical senses tend to be deeply frightening – they’re so far outside our expectation. Many of us encounter God with our spiritual senses; that’s powerful enough. But when we perceive the holy with the same senses that engage the rest of life? Look out! We can’t pretend to be manufacturing it – we’re either crazy, or in God’s presence – and neither possibility is comforting. I only had one experience even remotely like that, on a retreat, when I felt a room I was in filled with a presence that was so completely “Other,” it seemed to be God or an angel… I’ll never know if it was, because I ran from the room back to where other people were.
It can be hard for us to relate to the shock of recognizing Jesus as God… this is a story handed down to us rather than experienced first-hand. And for many it’s such a familiar story, it can be hard to feel the emotions being related. So let’s think today:
This is how I understand Jesus' transfiguration: that in this moment he is revealed as pure light, an energy form that radiated brightness. Whatever the cause, the effect was surely splendid, and probably terrifying. And to deepen the scary, it was followed by the appearance of two dead people, conversing as if alive. But none of this seems to frighten the watching disciples; Peter’s only reaction is to want to build three shelters so they can hang out together.
Yet, when a bright cloud comes over them, with a voice in it, suddenly they’re petrified: While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.
We can absorb unusual experiences until there is too much “unusual” and our circuits overload. Or were the disciples fine as long as they could see – but when their sight was obscured by a cloud that spoke, then they panicked? Or was it that they knew in their spirits that God was speaking to them – and they could hear with their ears? OR was it what that voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” They must have heard the stories about Jesus’ baptism, when a voice from heaven was heard to say almost the same words. Were they overcome by fear because now it was unmistakable – that Jesus was in fact God's Son, holy, divine? Now there was no going back?
True movements of God that we experience with our physical senses tend to be deeply frightening – they’re so far outside our expectation. Many of us encounter God with our spiritual senses; that’s powerful enough. But when we perceive the holy with the same senses that engage the rest of life? Look out! We can’t pretend to be manufacturing it – we’re either crazy, or in God’s presence – and neither possibility is comforting. I only had one experience even remotely like that, on a retreat, when I felt a room I was in filled with a presence that was so completely “Other,” it seemed to be God or an angel… I’ll never know if it was, because I ran from the room back to where other people were.
It can be hard for us to relate to the shock of recognizing Jesus as God… this is a story handed down to us rather than experienced first-hand. And for many it’s such a familiar story, it can be hard to feel the emotions being related. So let’s think today:
- Are there times when you’ve been overcome by the presence of God in a way that scared you?
- Have your physical senses ever been overwhelmed so that you had to rely on spiritual perception?
- Does your expectation of God include experiences that seem supernatural, like this one?
- Do you think the Spirit wants you to be open to more?
What are we really afraid of? Fear is never the end of a holy encounter. Someone always comes along to say, “Be not afraid.” It was no different on the mountain: “But Jesus came and touched them, saying, ‘Get up and do not be afraid.’ And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.”
Every spiritual experience, no matter how deep or frightening, comes to an end. Our perceptions normalize; reality returns. And then we’re left with what? “No one, except Jesus himself alone.” Sounds like a pretty good deal to me…
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
Every spiritual experience, no matter how deep or frightening, comes to an end. Our perceptions normalize; reality returns. And then we’re left with what? “No one, except Jesus himself alone.” Sounds like a pretty good deal to me…
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
2-11-26 - Building Booths
You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.
Who among us doesn’t want to keep a good thing going, forever if possible? A perfect day, a lovely dinner, the “in-love” phase of a relationship… And we can’t. Days become twilight; meals yield to fullness and digestion; relationships evolve into other phases. Even the most fiery sunset dims, just about the time you get your camera ready.
But this was a really good thing, up there on that mountain – Jesus, and Moses, and Elijah. You don’t get bigger than that trifecta if you’re a Jew in occupied Israel in what would later be termed the first century: Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
So helpful, our Peter. He’ll just whip out the hammer and nails and make three little huts, nothing fancy. And who among us doesn’t recognize that impulse? To fix it, capture it, make it last? I keep taking pictures of my cats in adorable poses, even when I know I've taken the same pictures before, even with other cats. Because I want to keep them forever.
Are there things in your life you’re afraid will change or end, that you’d like to fix in place, build a shrine to? Children, friends, homes, work? It’s great to love something or someone wonderful. But when we try to cling to that, we sometimes close off other gifts God has to give us, gifts that might build on the ones we have, blessings that might even include what we’re trying to keep, yet allow that to grow into fullness. When we don’t try to save the precious things, but use and enjoy them, willing to have them end or run out, we often experience more abundance in our lives. When we enjoy the precious people, willing to see them grow up and even away, we experience a deeper, freer kind of love.
Today in prayer bring those people and things to mind, and offer them to God to bless. Offer them with open hands, and a heart willing to grow God-ward. God rarely takes away what we love; God just might show us something deeper and richer about that beloved than we can see from our current “holding” perspective.
It’s kind of funny, a fisherman offering to build a carpenter a hut. Maybe not as funny as that carpenter setting the bait and reeling those fisherman in to become the greatest catch of all, a catch that even includes us.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
Who among us doesn’t want to keep a good thing going, forever if possible? A perfect day, a lovely dinner, the “in-love” phase of a relationship… And we can’t. Days become twilight; meals yield to fullness and digestion; relationships evolve into other phases. Even the most fiery sunset dims, just about the time you get your camera ready.
But this was a really good thing, up there on that mountain – Jesus, and Moses, and Elijah. You don’t get bigger than that trifecta if you’re a Jew in occupied Israel in what would later be termed the first century: Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
So helpful, our Peter. He’ll just whip out the hammer and nails and make three little huts, nothing fancy. And who among us doesn’t recognize that impulse? To fix it, capture it, make it last? I keep taking pictures of my cats in adorable poses, even when I know I've taken the same pictures before, even with other cats. Because I want to keep them forever.
Are there things in your life you’re afraid will change or end, that you’d like to fix in place, build a shrine to? Children, friends, homes, work? It’s great to love something or someone wonderful. But when we try to cling to that, we sometimes close off other gifts God has to give us, gifts that might build on the ones we have, blessings that might even include what we’re trying to keep, yet allow that to grow into fullness. When we don’t try to save the precious things, but use and enjoy them, willing to have them end or run out, we often experience more abundance in our lives. When we enjoy the precious people, willing to see them grow up and even away, we experience a deeper, freer kind of love.
Today in prayer bring those people and things to mind, and offer them to God to bless. Offer them with open hands, and a heart willing to grow God-ward. God rarely takes away what we love; God just might show us something deeper and richer about that beloved than we can see from our current “holding” perspective.
It’s kind of funny, a fisherman offering to build a carpenter a hut. Maybe not as funny as that carpenter setting the bait and reeling those fisherman in to become the greatest catch of all, a catch that even includes us.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
2-10-26 - Son et Lumière
You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.
As a young tourist, one of my favorite things was the “Son et Lumière” shows often mounted at major attractions like ruins or castles or natural wonders. Colored lights played off the site, synchronized with music, punctuated by the “ooohs” and “ahhhs” of the appreciative crowd.
Something like that awaited Peter, James and John during their trip up the mountain with Jesus. First the light: And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.
The sound part came a moment later – and it wasn’t music, but conversation with two people long since departed this earth: Moses and Elijah, Israel’s prophets extraordinaire, and mountain-top witnesses of divine glory. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.”
Were they there to signal that the revelation of God in Christ was in continuity with the revelation of Israel’s past? Were they Exhibits A and B for The Law and The Prophets? Matthew doesn’t tell us what they’re discussing, though Luke says, “They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” Whatever the meaning, their presence was a major sign that God was up to something. “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
Most of us don’t experience God with sound and light and visions. Is that because God isn’t revealing God’s self in that way, or because we’ve so reduced our expectations that we figure a glorious sunset is the closest we’re going to get? It’s tricky – we can’t conjure up manifestations of divinity. We can, however, be open to them – and notice when we come across them.
As a young tourist, one of my favorite things was the “Son et Lumière” shows often mounted at major attractions like ruins or castles or natural wonders. Colored lights played off the site, synchronized with music, punctuated by the “ooohs” and “ahhhs” of the appreciative crowd.
Something like that awaited Peter, James and John during their trip up the mountain with Jesus. First the light: And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.
The sound part came a moment later – and it wasn’t music, but conversation with two people long since departed this earth: Moses and Elijah, Israel’s prophets extraordinaire, and mountain-top witnesses of divine glory. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.”
Were they there to signal that the revelation of God in Christ was in continuity with the revelation of Israel’s past? Were they Exhibits A and B for The Law and The Prophets? Matthew doesn’t tell us what they’re discussing, though Luke says, “They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” Whatever the meaning, their presence was a major sign that God was up to something. “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
Most of us don’t experience God with sound and light and visions. Is that because God isn’t revealing God’s self in that way, or because we’ve so reduced our expectations that we figure a glorious sunset is the closest we’re going to get? It’s tricky – we can’t conjure up manifestations of divinity. We can, however, be open to them – and notice when we come across them.
- How do you most powerfully experience the holy?
- Have you had experiences that you’d categorize as supernatural?
- What happened, and what was the fruit of that experience in your life?
- And do you share that story? It builds up other people's faith to hear our holy stories.
God shows up in so many ways in our lives. The more we become attuned to the movement of the divine in and around us, the more we experience it.
And whether it’s eavesdropping on Biblical heroes or marveling at the presence of wild creatures in our back yards, there are sound and light shows all over for us to stumble upon, as we keep our spiritual eyes and ears open.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
And whether it’s eavesdropping on Biblical heroes or marveling at the presence of wild creatures in our back yards, there are sound and light shows all over for us to stumble upon, as we keep our spiritual eyes and ears open.
© Kate Heichler, 2026. To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Here are the bible readings for next Sunday. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.
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