Letting Go of What You Fear to Lose
- davidwperk
- Jul 25
- 6 min read
Devotional Reflection, Friday, July 25. 2025
Proper 11, the week of the sixth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 11)
The Rev. David W. Perkins, Th.D.
Key phrases for reflection from today’s Gospel reading:
21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him; and he was by the sea. 22Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23and begged him repeatedly, ‘My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.’
. . . .
35 While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader’s house to say, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?’ 36But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, ‘Do not fear, only believe.’
. . . .
41He took her by the hand and said to her, ‘Talitha cum,’ which means, ‘Little girl, get up!’ 42And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age) At this they were overcome with amazement.
(You will find the full text of today’s Gospel reading at the end of this reflection.)
Daily Office Lectionary readings: (BCP, 976)
AM Psalm 40, 54; PM Psalm 51
1 Samuel 31:1-13; Acts 15:12-21; Mark 5:21-43
Today we celebrate the Feast of James, the Apostle. (See below.)
David's Reflections
In the movie, “Star Wars: Episode Three” Anakin Skywalker, who later becomes Darth Vader, consults with Yoda, a Jedi master, about his dream that his wife was going to die in childbirth. Yoda tells him that attachment makes him vulnerable to the dark side of The Force and then says, “You must train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose.”
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells the father of a little girl who has died, “Fear not. Only believe.” The man had made his way to Jesus in an effort to save his daughter from a threatening illness, but people from his household had caught up with him to tell him that his daughter had died and that there was no need to trouble Jesus any further.
Anakin Skywalker feared the loss of his spouse. The man in our Gospel reading feared the loss of his daughter. Is the fear wrong? Of course not. But, attachment to a relationship, or a dream, or our bodies, or a vocation, or a possession can become a consuming passion. Our anxieties about loss signal us that the very thing we fear to lose must be released and let go. In the movie, Anakin prostitutes himself to the power of the Sith Lord to spare himself the loss of his wife. He violates his own core values because he believes he cannot live without her.
We can listen to our anxieties and fears and allow them to alert us to whatever or whomever has become too important, so important that we might violate our core values and undermine our Christian commitment to avoid losing. Therein lies our dilemma. Everything we are and have—every relationship, every capability, every opportunity, every possession, every dream—comes to us as gifts of God’s grace. We often live with the illusion that we somehow deserve our dream, our possessions, our relationships, forgetting that even the health we enjoy, the air we breathe, the opportunities we have are gifts.
In today’s reading, the man’s daughter obviously was a gift. To release that gift to God was to acknowledge its source and to avoid the kind of attachment that can paralyze with fear of loss. In Yoda’s words, “You must train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose.” What do you fear most to lose? Can you release that gift to God, acknowledging that it is God’s gift to you and refusing to cling to it?
Collect of the Day, Proper 11, The sixth Sunday after Pentecost
Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (BCP, 231)
Today we celebrate the Feast of James, son of Zebedee, the Apostle.
Collect of the Feast of James the Apostle
O Gracious God, we remember before you today your servant and apostle James, first among the Twelve to suffer martyrdom for the Name of Jesus Christ; and we pray that you will pour out upon the leaders of your church that spirit of self-denying service by which alone they may have true authority among your people; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Lectionary Prayer
God of faithful surprises, throughout the ages you have made known your love and power in unexpected ways and places: May we daily perceive the joy and wonder of your abiding presence and offer our lives in gratitude for our redemption. Amen.
Revised Common Lectionary Prayers (Minneapolis: Augsburg/Fortress, 2002), p. 135.
Prayer for the Holy Spirit
Come Holy Spirit, breathe new life into your people. Show us the true meaning of the Gospel, and enkindle our hearts with a fire that will transform our lives. Grant us the unity for which Jesus prayed—now and forever. Amen.
People’s Companion to the Breviary: The Liturgy of the Hours with Inclusive Language. Vol. 2. Indianapolis: Carmelite Sisters of Indianapolis, p. 328.
A Collect for Fridays
Almighty God, whose most dear Son went not up to joy but first he suffered pain, and entered not into glory before he was crucified: Mercifully grant that we, walking in the way of the cross, may find it none other than the way of life and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (BCP, 97)
A Collect for Mission
Everliving God, whose will it is that all should come to you through your Son Jesus Christ: Inspire our witness to him, that all may know the power of his forgiveness and the hope of his resurrection; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (BCP, 816-817)
Daily Office Gospel, Mark 5:21-43
21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him; and he was by the sea. 22Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23and begged him repeatedly, ‘My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.’
24 So he went with him. And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. 25Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. 26She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. 27She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28for she said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.’ 29Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched my clothes?’ 31And his disciples said to him, ‘You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, “Who touched me?”’ 32He looked all around to see who had done it. 33But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. 34He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.’
35 While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader’s house to say, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?’ 36But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, ‘Do not fear, only believe.’ 37He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. 38When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 39When he had entered, he said to them, ‘Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.’ 40And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41He took her by the hand and said to her, ‘Talitha cum,’ which means, ‘Little girl, get up!’ 42And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age) At this they were overcome with amazement. 43He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.
Daily Prayer Offices in The Book of Common Prayer
Morning Prayer, Rite 2, page 75, Book of Common Prayer
Noonday Prayer, p. 103, Book of Common Prayer
Order of Worship for Evening (Vespers), p. 109, Book of Common Prayer
Evening Prayer, Rite 2, page 115, Book of Common Prayer
Compline (Night Prayer), Page 127, Book of Common Prayer
Daily Devotionals, page 136, Book of Common Prayer
©2025. David W. Perkins
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