Daily Reflection – 1/10/2024
Sacred Scripture
As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon´s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them. That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed and Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.” And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons. (Mark 1:29-39)
Reflection
There are times when life is just plain hard. We don’t get our way. People or relatives hold grudges. Loneliness or lack of self-esteem pervades our very thoughts. Things happen that we never wanted to have happened.
Faith, at times, is abstract and its results may not seem tangible. In those times it seems as if there is only darkness and Jesus is nowhere to be seen.
But regardless of how dark it may seem, Jesus never leaves us. He may seem to withdraw but that does not mean he is absent. In fact, the feeling of His withdrawing is an invitation for us to move to a new place, to face the deserted places in our lives.
We all have them. For some it is accepting the limitations that age and disease bring and doing our best to deal with them. Others deal with broken relationships. Loneliness and grief are desert places for some. Each of us could name our own wildernesses and deserts. They are as real as life itself. They are barren patches that will not be nurtured.
Most of us don’t like them. Our sorrows and losses are laid bare in the deserted place. In the wilderness it seems we are not in control. It is also, however, the place where our deepest healing can happen.
Jesus knows the deserted places. In His earthly life, he saw them daily and, each time, he brought healing and forgiveness. It’s no different than today. As He did when he walked amongst us, Jesus sees the deserted places and goes there to draw us close to Him.
They are the starting point for his message of good news. Good news comes from the empty and desolate places. New life arises from deserted and empty places. The good news of Christ comes from the wilderness.
This is the reality of the relationship with Jesus. He is the constant in our lives. He never leaves us. He always wants us closer to Him. He knows every hair on our head. No one of us is more important to Him because we are all important. His life taught us about love and forgiveness. His death brought us the promise of eternal life. The used and dead wood of the cross was nurtured by His blood and the cross became a symbol of His eternal love for us.
Stop for a moment and please read that paragraph again. Don’t just read the words but take them into your heart where you can feel those words. Sit in silence, nurtured by His love. Then repeat these words:
“Jesus loves me, He is always with me. His love fills my soul.”
Go today to the deserted places of your life, places that you think are barren, empty, desolate, and there you will find Jesus . . . praying for you.
Prayer of The Day
“Lord, you are my beginning and my end: you created me, and you are leading me home to you in heaven. Thank you for your love. I know that my sins can compound my unworthiness, yet you would still enfold me in your unfathomable love. Lord, increase my love for prayer and the quiet of my life when we are together”.
Daily Note
We must build our days around prayer. If we wait to have time to pray, it won’t happen. Punctuating the day with prayer – at rising, at lunch and at retiring – and any other time in between – helps us to stay at peace despite the winds of the world. It helps us to keep our eyes on Jesus!
