July 20, 2026
Pick Up Your Mat
Another month, another MM Chapel time. For those who are new, you can start here with the why behind having these each month. For those who are all caught up, here is July’s teaching.
This month’s lesson came from John chapter 5. Where the cultural legend of an angel stirring the water and the first to get to the waters after the mysterious churning begins is healed occurs. Now, whether that legend is real or not, there was definitely healing happening. And who are we to say God couldn’t use an angel to churn up waters to bring about newness in these bodies of ours?
The point of our chapel time wasn’t focused on the mystery or legend, but on the heart of the issue.
Jesus sees the lame man waiting by the pool and asks him if he wants to be healed. Our speaker reminds us that Jesus wasn’t being unkind in his asking. He was trying to get to the heart of the matter. This individual wasn’t able to walk. He didn’t have anyone around to ask for help. He only had his mat. Him and his mat, for years, waiting by that pool.
Take Up Your Mat
Then Jesus says, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” – John 5:8. Like he hadn’t just been sitting around for 38 years on his mat by the pool. Like following that order was the easiest thing to do. And it was, because somewhere between Jesus’ words, the man immediately got up and walked. I’d imagine it would look like a baby giraffe walking around at that point, but that’s not what the scriptures say. In fact, the scriptures say he went to the temple; because it was the Sabbath.
Our speaker pondered if someone saw the guy with the mat and thought – that looks like the guy from the pool. By this point, he would have been so ingrained into the scenery, it wouldn’t been easy to not even see him as a person anymore. But he was. He had a backstory. And he had his mat. Still, he carried that mat with him. We know, because he got in trouble for carrying it on the Sabbath.
And Walk
Now, for us, we probably won’t get in trouble for carrying our bed to church. Might get strange looks, but no trouble. But it’s what the mat symbolized for us. This mat symbolizes this man’s past. His burden to carry. And then tell everyone else about. See this mat – this used to be his home, his prison. But because of Jesus, he can pick it up and walk. No longer burdened by it.
Our takeaway was simple when you think about it. What are we carrying around as the reminder of where we’ve come from. How far God has brought us? Tell someone this week about what you aren’t imprisoned by anymore, because of Jesus. Find the opportunities to share your mat, to the ends of the earth.
Thanks be to God.
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