Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
During January it seems many of us feel a sense of relief. The expectations, busyness, and pressures of the holiday season are lifted and going back to familiar routines can offer a certain comfort. While reflecting on today’s Scriptures, I repeatedly returned to what Jesus says in the Gospel of Mark immediately after he learns of John the Baptist’s arrest: “This is the time of fulfillment. The Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the Gospel.” (Mk 1:15)
Notwithstanding our New Year’s resolutions, the foundational identity as disciples of Jesus remains the same and our essence as disciples is to always and everywhere proclaim the Gospel. It is not merely about what we do or say, but rather who we are in our deepest selves. In the passage from Mark’s Gospel today, Jesus proclaims his mission and then begins the call of his disciples. There is no time lapse or putting off, rather it is more as if the direction and focus of the universe has made an about face and immediately began proceeding in the opposite direction! This is metanoia—this is what we are commanded to do.
Each and every day we awaken it is only at the pleasure of God. The purpose of our life—for this one day—is to announce the Gospel to all persons we encounter. Each day, with its particular challenges, twists, and turns, beseeches us to examine ourselves, take note of where we find weakness and where we find strength. Each day for us, as disciples-in-the-making, is the ‘time of fulfillment’. If we truly believe, if we truly love, and if we have truly committed to following Jesus, every waking moment is ‘the time’. Let us not give ourselves ‘time off’ from the fullness of who we are meant to be. Let us resolve to live each and every day in a deeper conversion, in a more profound belief, acutely aware that “this is the time of fulfillment.”
--Gail Lyman