He
had cured many and, as a result, those who had diseases were pressing
upon him to touch him. Mark 3 |
Creighton University Online Ministries Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer Second Week of Ordinary Time: Jan.
19-25, 2020
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The Second Week of Ordinary TimeThe Second Sunday of Ordinary Time offers us beautiful readings. From the Prophet Isaiah: "I will make you a light to the nations..." In John's Gospel John the Baptist and his followers see Jesus as he walks toward them. John says, "“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ Monday is the Memorial of Saint Agnes, virgin and martyr. Thursday is the Memorial of Saint Francis de Sales, bishop and doctor of the Church. Friday is the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul, Apostle. Saturday is the Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, bishops. In
the First Book of Samuel we hear God's rejection
of Saul as king. Then Samuel anoints the youngest of Jesse's sons,
the shepherd boy David, as king. David kills the Philistine, winning
victory for the people, in the name of the Lord. Saul becomes jealous
of David and plans to kill him but Saul's son, Jonathan, changes his
mind. The Third Sunday of Ordinary Time brings us to a cycle of Matthew's gospels during every Sunday of Ordinary Time this year. This week we see the call of the first disciples as Jesus stops Andrew and his brother, Peter on the beach. “'Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men'. At once they left their nets and followed him.” |
Daily Prayer This WeekOrdinary Time is the longest Season of the Church year. This year we have only a few weeks of Ordinary Time until Lent begins. These weeks between the Christmas season and Lent are an important time to continue to work on our habits of focusing our desires early in the day and talking with the Lord throughout the day, in the background of our busy lives. This is how we become "Contemplatives in action" and find intimacy with God without leaving the context of our real lives. How do we do that with the hectic pace of our lives? We hear people say "I don't have time to pray." It isn't about finding more time but more focus in our day with God. With this type of focusing and active consciousness, we find ourselves surprised at the time we really do have. There are dozens of times in all of our days during which our minds are occupied with something: a song, re-playing the last event, practicing a conversation with someone, having an imaginary argument with someone, thinking through the "to do" list of the day. We can learn to fill these times with whatever we choose. If we choose to let it be about our relationship with our Lord, it transforms our lives. It all begins with our mornings. This week, when we first get up and perhaps for a few moments in the shower or getting dressed, let's tell the Lord that what we desire today is to be more conscious of how what we do this day is responding to his call to me to be his disciple. Then, during the day, in those moments while driving or shopping or walking down the hall to a meeting, we can talk about how we are living our call in this or that activity we are engaged in. That conversation may get more detailed and specific in this or that set of events. Each evening, for even a few moments, we can review our day's momentary conversations, recognizing the moments of real connection and grace and giving thanks for them, and resolving to take even greater advantage of these opportunities the next day. |
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