Emotional Health and the Miracles of Jesusনমুনা

Turning Shame into Success

For some of us it might be difficult to understand the context of John 2:1-12. To begin with, why didn’t the host order enough food if they knew exactly how many people they had invited?

When I was growing up, unlike today, invitations were usually addressed, not just to you, but to your family and friends. A wedding reception was a community affair – a time to meet all your relatives and their friends who have travelled from all over the place.

The host would go to great lengths to ensure that his guests – known or unknown were all well taken care of. The ultimate compliment to the bride or groom’s family was that the guests were all well taken care of and the food was the best that they have ever had. The quality of a wedding was directly associated with the food that was served.

Keeping this in mind you should be able to sense the feeling of humiliation that the hosts of the wedding at Cana may have felt. And it also throws light on the disappointment of the guests. This can be very embarrassing.

Embarrassment is an experience we all feel. It is associated with shame. It makes us feel small and judged. In these situations, very little help is offered, instead people have a tendency to pass judgements. The effect of this can result in people feeling ashamed and experience a loss of dignity.

In this context Jesus’ response is quite helpful. While everyone around him talked, he acted. People around us may talk about our failures, but Jesus is willing to act positively in our lives. The passage shows us that Jesus not only turns water into wine, but he turns their looming shame into success. The wine that was served later was better than what was served first.

Invite Jesus and allow him to be involved in your life – he can turn things around. He can turn your past shame into success. He can bring order to your messy situations. He looks past our shame and sees what we were meant to be. All that you have to do is cooperate with him and he will turn you into your best self.