He would Withdraw to Deserted Places to Pray"

Today's Mass Readings

In today’s first reading from the First Letter of St. John, we are exhorted to believe in Jesus. Those who follow Jesus, who believe in Him, may have confidence in the salvation promised in Christ. The three witnesses who St. John says “testify” to Jesus are the Spirit, water, and blood. These three represent the Sacraments, where we encounter God’s spirit, particularly in Baptism (water) and the Eucharist (Jesus’ body and blood). In the Gospel reading for today, taken from Luke’s Gospel, we see the belief in Jesus transform a man physically, healing him from a skin disease. But notice that in this passage, after the healing, Jesus withdrew to a number of different locations, all of which were deserted, in order to pray. Jesus’ prayer is a model for us. Many, perhaps even most, of us sometimes seem too busy to pray. We should learn to practice the presence of God in whatever we do, offering up all of our work to the Lord. When we clean dishes, we can be aware of God’s presence, and pray. Ora et labora, prayer and work, must be united for the Christian. This can be most difficult when our time is divided, especially if we are involved in childcare, or in demanding work that requires attention. In these moments sometimes it is enough to just offer them up to God before we begin the task at hand, or even afterwards, or simply being aware of God’s presence while we work. But it is also important for us to take some time apart to be alone with God, even if we can only spend a brief period of time, praying to God. Yes we can encounter Jesus when we are busy, when we are working, changing diapers, doing dishes, and we need to cultivate such an ability to encounter God through our work. But we can also encounter Jesus in the silent recesses of our hearts, in prayer when we are alone.

Let us strive to find some alone time every day to spend with the Lord. Such silent time will only strengthen our connection with God when we seek Him through our daily work. All of this is wrapped up in St. John’s exhortation to believe in the Lord, for faith is not simply a feeling, or even mere belief, but rather it is a living trust and encounter with the living God.

- Jeff Morrow