Saturday 13 June – Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Reflection: Luke 2:41-51

HOW LONG WILL YOU GO WITHOUT HIM?

Who among us can journey through life alone? We surely need the support of one another. However, no matter how good, dependable or cheering the support we enjoy from others, times will come when we will find this inadequate and unsatisfying. It cannot but be so, for we are all limited in our capacity to assist and our experiences in life. We are all sojourners on earth with limited understanding of the seasons of life and the purpose(s) of the seasons.

When the inevitable happens – when the support of men fails us as it is sometimes bound to, who do we turn to? Our Creator (Psalm 27:10); however, we can only do this if we acknowledge His existence and our dire need for Him. Dear friend, have you been journeying through life without a relationship with Jesus Christ? Perhaps you doubt the existence of God and have therefore opted to live for yourself or you hitherto had a good relationship with Christ but this has been destroyed by lukewarmness ( Rev 3:15-16) or sin ( Isaiah 59:1-3).

Either way, we need to heed the call of St. Paul in today’s first reading: “be reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:21). We need to jettison the old way of living for self interest (2 Cor. 5: 14-15) and cooperate with God to achieve His glorious plans for us. At every point in our life’s journey, we must ask ourselves: “am I journeying with God or have I deserted Him?” This must go beyond mere assumption; we need a clear conviction of His presence. If Christ is not with us, no matter who else is with us, it will be too costly to continue with life without Him! Let us turn around to seek Jesus as the Parents did in today’s Gospel reading. We can be rest assured that we will find Him as he is a loving Father patiently awaiting our homecoming (Jer. 29: 13; Luke 15: 11-32).

Prayer: Keep me steadfast with You dear Lord. Liberate me from every sense of false independence. Please deepen my quest and reliance on You! Amen.

KNOW YOUR FAITH: CCC 1733–The more on does what is good, the freer one becomes. There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just. The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of freedom and leads to “the slavery of sin.”

HIDE A TREASURE: “You will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13 RSV-CE

Readings for today: 2 Cor. 5: 14-21; Psalm 103: 1-4, 9-12; Luke 2:41-51