There’s no shortcut…

Lily Cathcart May 08, 2026 2 2

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John 14: 1-14 (NIV-UK)

1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God[a]; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know[b] my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

8 Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”

9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. 12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

When you’re streaming a programme or video online have you ever got impatient and clicked ahead? I don’t mean the good old ‘ten seconds forward button’ I mean clicking on the loading bar ahead of the marker.

I definitely have, I’m getting more and more impatient as I age. It’s like time seems to be moving faster and I suddenly feel I haven’t got spare minutes to let people meander to a point, I want them to get there now.

But wait, what is this? I click ahead and the whole thing stops, a spinning graphic appears in the centre of the screen, I’ve rushed too far ahead, it’s not ready. It almost seems to be judging me, telling me that I’m not ready for what I’m trying to see. I haven’t done the work of watching the conversation, I won’t understand because I haven’t tried to see past my own assumptions of where this is going.

It might have a point.

I wonder if in this reading from John 14 Jesus was having a similar problem with the disciples. Perhaps he felt like they had not heard the conversation he’d been having, as if they had mentally skipped ahead missing the key lessons and he was forced to pause. He needed to let the realisations of what he was, and had been saying their whole friendship, load properly.

In their defence they were only human, just like me, imperfect, impatient and sometimes needing a nudge to listen to the whole conversation.

Prayer:

God who has long conversations

We are sorry for when we try to skip ahead

In our lives and in your timing for us

Help us to listen to you more

Teach us to enjoy the slow discovery of you

Amen