We begin at verse 5. ‘When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him imploring him ‘Lord…..’.

Hey. Wait. What?!

I’m stuck right there. ‘When Jesus entered Capernaum…..’ Isn’t that just typical? Has that ever happened to you? You just open the door, step over the threshold and right bang there somebody wants a piece of you. Countless times I’ve said ‘Let me just get in the door and get my shoes off.’

But Jesus doesn’t.

The Greek word used for all the beseeching and entreating and imploring that the centurion was doing is ‘parakaleo’. It means to come alongside and talk to. It’s the same word Jesus uses for the Holy Spirit, ‘the counsellor’. It’s the nature of God to get along side us and engage with us. He’s always ready to give us His attention, to take a moment to get close and talk with us. The heart of Jesus is to stop and spend some time just with us. To be the Ever Present help in our time of trouble.

This man isn’t in Jesus’ way, interrupting his flow into Capernaum. Jesus doesn’t see him as an obstacle between him, the end of his journey and that cup of coffee.

To Jesus this man is the moment. This man is the now. He is the most important thing.

This seeming interruption reminds us to take each moment as a God given opportunity. To practice some spiritual time keeping. Right now, today, this moment in time has been given to us specifically to focus on, to enjoy, to worship in, to engage with.

God Himself, who is outside of all time, was so much better at living in the moment than we are!

When Ezra, my 7 year old son, hears me coming up the path he flings the door open, arms stretched wide and cries out ‘Who wants a hug?’

Let’s be more like Ezra.

Let’s be more like Jesus.

Let us not see interruptions as annoyances or people as obstacles but embrace the interaction and opportunity for engagement. A ‘now’ moment given to us to enjoy and engage both with God and with man.”