Daily Gospel for Sunday 12 October 2025

Thin places

It was in the year King Uzziah died that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple.  

Isaiah 6:1

Uzziah had become king when he was 16 and reigned for 52 years. For much of that time, the kingdom of Judah had thrived. Uzziah had listened to the prophet Zechariah and walked in the ways of the Lord. However, later on in his reign he had become arrogant, and on one occasion, he went into the temple to burn incense, a task which only priests could perform. Uzziah was struck down with leprosy and lived in isolation for the last years of his reign.

The death of King Uzziah after such a long reign was clearly a turning point for Isaiah. His world had suddenly changed. I wonder what his mood was when he entered the temple. He likely felt confused and insecure as the nation faced a major time of change, but in that moment, God met with him in an amazing way. Suddenly, he was overwhelmed by the majesty and holiness of God and forced to take a completely new look at his life.

God meets with us in an amazing variety of ways. He can do so when we are in a church building or a garden. He can speak to us as we read the Bible or the newspaper. He can reveal himself through a friend or a stranger. The main question is whether we are ready to meet with him. Celtic Christianity speaks of thin places, where heaven and earth seem to meet and where it can be particularly easy to meet with God. The islands of Iona and Lindisfarne are two places that have been identified as thin places for hundreds of years, but you may well have discovered somewhere else that is a thin place for you.

The ways in which God might meet with us are many and various. What matters is that we should, like Isaiah, be ready for that moment.

QUESTION

Have you discovered any thin places where it seems particularly easy to meet with God?

PRAYER

Lord God, thank you that you want to speak with me. Help me to always be ready to hear your voice. Amen