Monday, February 4, 2013

Reflection Tuesday Week 4 Year C- Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo



Reflection Tuesday Week 4 Year C- Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo
Readings: Hebrews 12:1-4 Ps 22:26b-27, 38, 30-32 Mark 5:21-43

How we must run our Christian Race

The Bible lessons today remind us that practicing our Christian faith is like running a race. In order to win this race there are things we must reject, or do or look for. We must reject the burden of sins. We must run with endurance. It is action packed. We must fix our eyes on Jesus, just as Jairius did in today's Gospel.

Jairius a synagogue official we are told came forward and seeing, Jesus, he fixed his eyes on him, and felt at his feet and pleads for God’s healing mercies upon his daughter. Same with the woman who had suffered hemorrhage for 12 years; hearing about Jesus, came up and touched Jesus and was cured. Even at the house of the synagogue official many ridiculed the healing power of Jesus. But this did not stop the official in believing nor Jesus from saying to the sick girl “Talitha Koum” Little girl arise!

Rising on our Christian journey the Epistle to the Hebrew affirms is never going to be easy. We must let certain things go, materially and spiritually, especially sins and bad habits in order to rise smoothly or to run well. It requires endurance, perseverance and learning even from our past heroes, Abraham, and the Saints, and even from Jesus himself.

And like the synagogue officials and the woman healed of hemorrhage our senses, eyes, ears must be fixed on the compassionate High Priest, Jesus, no distraction.

As we run this race in our marriages, politics, friendship, studies, work, priesthood and religious life to whom do we have our eyes fixed upon? And what might prevent us from running this spiritual race to the end? And what will ever separate us from the love of God?