My reflections for Feb. 05, 2006 - Sunday

February 5, 2006

Reading I
Job 7:1-4, 6-7

Job spoke, saying:
Is not man’s life on earth a drudgery?
Are not his days those of hirelings?
He is a slave who longs for the shade,
a hireling who waits for his wages.
So I have been assigned months of misery,
and troubled nights have been allotted to me.
If in bed I say, “When shall I arise?”
then the night drags on;
I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle;
they come to an end without hope.
Remember that my life is like the wind;
I shall not see happiness again.

(Job laments the hardships of his life but he does not ever lose faith in God. Terrible things have happened to him but he refuses to blame the Lord for any of them. He stands as an example of righteous suffering that today's world needs to heed. Instaead of seeking to inflict revenge "tit for tat," let us choose to berak the cycles of violence and revenge that we encounter through righteous and forgiving living.)

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
Praise the LORD, for he is good;
sing praise to our God, for he is gracious;
it is fitting to praise him.
The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem;
the dispersed of Israel he gathers.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He tells the number of the stars;
he calls each by name.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.
Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
to his wisdom there is no limit.
The LORD sustains the lowly;
the wicked he casts to the ground.
R. Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.

Reading II
1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23

Brothers and sisters:
If I preach the gospel, this is no reason for me to boast,
for an obligation has been imposed on me,
and woe to me if I do not preach it!
If I do so willingly, I have a recompense,
but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.
What then is my recompense?
That, when I preach,
I offer the gospel free of charge
so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.

Although I am free in regard to all,
I have made myself a slave to all
so as to win over as many as possible.
To the weak I became weak, to win over the weak.
I have become all things to all, to save at least some.
All this I do for the sake of the gospel,
so that I too may have a share in it.

(St. paul understands his call to be a missionary as an obligation of the Gospel to which he freely gives his assent. That is, it is a call he has recevid and responded to in love. The true missionary is a missionary of God's love, not a missionary out of duty or obligation. It is the former that has the greatest power and will attract more poeple to the Kingdom of God.)

Gospel
Mark 1:29-39

On leaving the synagogue
Jesus entered the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.
Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever.
They immediately told him about her.
He approached, grasped her hand, and helped her up.
Then the fever left her and she waited on them.

When it was evening, after sunset,
they brought to him all who were ill or possessed by demons.
The whole town was gathered at the door.
He cured many who were sick with various diseases,
and he drove out many demons,
not permitting them to speak because they knew him.

Rising very early before dawn, he left
and went off to a deserted place, where he prayed.
Simon and those who were with him pursued him
and on finding him said, “Everyone is looking for you.”
He told them, “Let us go on to the nearby villages
that I may preach there also.
For this purpose have I come.”
So he went into their synagogues,
preaching and driving out demons throughout the whole

(At one level, Jesus lives a very ordinary life. He does the sorts of things that everyone else has to do. But He is also a man on a mission and He uses every opportunity at His disposal o fulfill this call. He makes a courtesy call to the mother-in-law of Peter but takes the opportunity to heal her of her illnesses. He prays like the person next to him, but finds throngs of people seeking him out to the extent that He has to be constantly on the move.)


God's special verse/thought for me today.
my reflections
think: The true missionary is a missionary of God's love, not a missionary out of duty or obligation.

thank You Lord for: