John 2:1–11
The first sign Jesus performs doesn’t happen in a synagogue or on a hillside. It doesn’t involve a sermon or a healing. It happens at a wedding, amid laughter, food, conversation, and the quiet logistics of hospitality.
And it begins with water. Ordinary water, drawn from ordinary jars, carried by ordinary people doing what needed to be done.
When we hear the story of the wedding at Cana, it’s easy to focus on the miracle itself: water becoming wine. But before the transformation, there is attentiveness. Someone notices a need. Someone brings it to Jesus. Someone fills the jars. Someone draws the water. The miracle unfolds not in spectacle, but in faithfulness.
So often we imagine that God shows up only in the extraordinary, in mountaintop moments, life-altering decisions, or dramatic answers to prayer. But Cana reminds us that God is just as present in the everyday rhythms of our lives: in meals prepared, tasks completed, conversations shared, and quiet moments that seem unremarkable.
Today I invite us to slow down and attend to the ordinary, to trust that God is already at work in the places we are most tempted to overlook.
Set aside 10-15 minutes.
Choose a simple, everyday activity – something you normally do without much thought. It might be washing dishes, making tea or coffee, folding laundry, walking outside, or sitting quietly by a window.
Before you begin, pause and take a slow breath. Offer this simple prayer, either aloud or in your heart:
“God, help me to notice where you are already at work.”
As you move through the activity:
- Slow your pace.
- Pay attention to your senses: what you see, hear, touch, smell, or feel.
- Notice any resistance, boredom, gratitude, or quiet joy that arises.
If your mind wanders, gently return to the moment at hand. As you finish, reflect on one or two of these questions:
- What did I notice that I usually miss?
- Where might God have been present in this simple moment?
- What if transformation begins not with more effort, but with deeper attention?
You may wish to journal a few words or simply sit with what you’ve noticed.
Let’s pray as we seek God in the midst of our ordinary moments:
God of quiet miracles, You meet us not only in the extraordinary, but in kitchens and living rooms, on sidewalks and at tables, in water jars and waiting moments. Slow us down enough to notice. Open our eyes to your presence in the ordinary. Teach us to trust that you are already at work in the simple tasks and familiar rhythms of our days. Take what feels plain and ordinary in us, and, in your time, transform it. We offer ourselves to you, just as we are. AMEN
