Tuesday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Jesus departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God.
–Luke 6:12
Many Gospel stories tell of Jesus taking time away from the crowds and his devoted followers to be alone with God in prayer. The busier the days, the more he awoke early, or made sure to depart to a ‘lonely place’. In today’s Gospel, he heads to the mountain—whose heights give a fresh outlook and whose clefts give a place of shelter through the night.
Encountering God's creation is encountering the "caress of God", as Pope Francis reminds us in Laudato si and Laudate Deum. And we are told Jesus spent the entire night in prayer. This passage gives insight into a life of prayer, which requires taking time to be alone with God. Prayer is a time of building and renewing the relationship with God, through honestly speaking and deeply listening. Like cultivating any relationship with a loved one - we must spend extended time together. Like Jesus before choosing his disciples, when we’ve got important decisions to make for our family, workplace or ministry, this extended time in quiet prayer assists us in hearing the Spirit’s guidance for our choices In my own life, I know that taking such times of prayer in nature, restores my soul and helps me to respond to other people and life’s challenges from a deeper, caring, compassionate space.
Some questions the Gospel invites us to ponder.
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What are your sacred special spaces alone in nature to get away and deeply listen to God ?
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How has God spoken to you and replenished you? What wisdom has come to you from these times?
Let us pray for one another as we go forth as communities of disciples to be healers and reconcilers in our day.
—Sr. Leanne Jablonski, FMI