Skimming the Surface

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, July 27th, 2025:
Seventheenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Colossians
2.12-14

​Brothers and sisters, When you were buried with Christ in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.

And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the Cross.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

This has been a busy week. One that has left me second-guessing every interaction. I scrutinize and analyze my motives, words, actions. I wonder if I was communicating lovingly or critically. Did I lift up or tear down? Are my ruminations the result of deeds I should apologize for, or have they manifested through old wounds that left me feeling insecure and “bad”?

Did I pray enough?

Was I listening to Him when I did?

In times like these, when it feels like I am lacking the time to make real connections with others and rather skim the surface of each encounter, barely taking them in, I find narratives of shame encircle me. I can be very creative with the stories I author on behalf of others. Stories that lead to division in my heart – isolation.

And then I sat with this reading from Colossians. “He set this aside. Nailing it to the cross.” All that I’ve done – all that I ever will do – He is willing to leave there, at the cross. Can I leave it there, too?

A careful examination of conscience is a healthy practice. Leaning into my relationships and responsibilities with a heart that desires integrity and is willing to reconcile is a holy disposition. Still, a fine line hovers between self-examination and self-scrutiny. When that sneaky voice of shame begins to emerge, and I receive a sentence of condemnation within the walls of my mind, it’s important to remind myself whose voice that is, because it does not sound like the resounding mercy of God.

I was buried with Christ in baptism.

Submerged, underwater, the old is gone. 

Drawn back to the surface, I breathed in new life, a life eternal.


Breathe Him in.

Accept your new identity.

Put on Christ.

Be who He called you to be.

Look within through eyes eternal.




Lori MacDonald

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