Then after this delay, he said to his disciples ‘Let us go back to Judea.’

They said to him ‘Rabbi, just now the Judeans sought to stone you, and yet are you going there again?’

Jesus said ‘Are there not twelve hours in the day? If someone walks in the day they will not stumble because they see the light of this world. If someone walks in the night they stumble because the light is not in them. ‘

Having said these things, he said ‘Lazarus, our friend has fallen asleep. Let us go, so that I can wake him up.’

Then his disciples said to him ‘Lord, if he is sleeping, he will be safe.’

But Jesus had been speaking about his death, they were thinking that he spoke about natural sleeping. 

Then Jesus said to them plainly, ‘Lazarus has died. And I rejoice – for your sake -that I was not there, so that you might believe. But let us go to him.’ 

Then Thomas, (that’s ‘Twin’) said to his fellow disciples ‘Let us go too- so that we might die with him. ‘

Be thou a bright flame before me,
Be thou a guiding star above me
Be thou a smooth path below me
Be thou a kindly shepherd behind me
Today – tonight -forever
Amen.

St Columba