Daily Reflection
of Creighton University's Online Ministries
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September 30th, 2009
by

Chas Kestermeier, S.J.

English Department
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Wednesday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time
Nehemiah 2:1-8
Psalm 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
Luke 9:57-62

Luke has put together three short passages that give us a picture of a Jesus that we don't often see, a Jesus whom I would say is burning with zeal, absolutely driven by the Spirit.  This Jesus is a whirlwind, His hand on the plow and eager to proclaim the Kingdom, the Good News, to a world waiting for hope and relief from the loneliness of the human condition.  He does not exactly encourage the three people who approach Him: He outlines in a most concrete manner what they need to expect if they follow Him, and it is not wealth, glory, or a stability or a peace that is of this world.

Here Jesus turns his back on...  what?  A fixed home or situation, family and its comfort and obligations.  He chooses to live with a poverty of place, of family, and of attachments, depending only on His Father and on doing His Father's will.

As for me, do I possess my memories, places, and things, or do they possess me?  And my values, principles, and priorities?  They do define me, to a certain extent, but am I free of them?  Can I always be ready to become other, more, and new, or do I let the past define me completely and rigidly?  I can't totally escape from the influence of that material reality that extends beyond air, water, food, clothing, and shelter, but am I free with all of that extra?

Do I place it all in God's hands and then receive it back from Him as a complete gift and a call to work with Him personally? 

If so, I might be able to find the same freedom that Jesus exhibits and live with the same energy and zeal that He does. 

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