Readings: Job 7:1-4. 6-7; 1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23; Mark 1:29-39
I heard a story this week. It’s about a man who suffered a serious heart attack and was taken to a Catholic hospital run by nuns to have emergency bypass surgery. The surgery went well, and as the man regained consciousness, he was reassured by one of the nuns waiting by his bedside. "Mr. Smith, you're going to be just fine," the nun said while patting his hand. "But we do have to know, however, how you intend to pay for your stay here. Are you covered by insurance?"
"No, I'm not," the man whispered hoarsely.
"Well then, can you pay in cash?"
"I'm afraid I can't, Sister."
The nun asked, "Well then, do you have any close relatives who could help you?" "
"I only have a spinster sister, who, like you, is a nun." the man replied.
The nun got a little indignant and announced loudly, "Nuns are not spinsters, Mr. Smith! Nuns are married to God."
”All right,” the patient replied, "Send the bill to my brother-in-law!"
In today’s gospel, we hear about another “in-law”, Peter’s mother-in-law, and how Jesus cured her of fever. But this event is just one of many that Mark presents to us in the first chapter of his gospel, which could probably best be titled, “A Day in the Life of Jesus Christ.” The day begins in the bright sunshine of a Galilean morning when Jesus walks out alongside the lake and invites Peter and Andrew, James and John to come follow him, and moves into a mid-morning visit to a synagogue in Capernaum (for this was a Sabbath day), where Jesus leaves the people wide-eyed and mouths agape over his teaching and the exorcism of a demon that possessed a man. The day takes in an afternoon visit some hours later at the home of Peter and Andrew, where Jesus cures Peter’s mother-in-law and traces the events of a busy evening in that city, as thousands gathered to be ministered to by Jesus. And the day finally concludes with a solitary prayer vigil in the hills during the lonely hours of the early morning. Thus a full twenty-four hours is given to us in this account. This seems to be a pretty typical day – a day of healing, counseling, teaching, preaching and caring. Mark is a gospel of action, and Jesus has a full calendar.
In this “Day in the Life of Jesus Christ” Mark depicts Jesus as . . . well, much like you and me: busy, working hard, putting in long hours. Yet unlike us much of the time, Jesus demonstrates a balance in his life. Yes, there were times he made himself completely available to the crowds who came seeking healing, help and wisdom. But in the midst of the busy-ness of his ministry and because of that busy-ness, Jesus went out to a deserted place, a place of solitude, a place to be alone, and He prayed. He spent time with His Father. He spent time rejuvenating His Spirit. He spent time reconnecting and communicating with the ultimate source of power in His life and ministry.
This time of silence and solitude, alone with his Father, was much more important and productive than the extra hour's sleep that his body needed. He was deliberate in his choices of place and time for prayer. He knew that this was a special time when he could rest in the arms of his Father without external demands. One-on-one time. A time to receive his daily direction, to inhale trust and to exhale all things that desired to divert him from what he was to do.
What about you and me? We live in a hi-tech, fast pace, workaholic world where no one rests. We're constantly on the road, running errands, going places. We stuff ourselves with "fast food," overbook our lives with a myriad of things to do, and at the end of the day we're totally exhausted. We're controlled by the need to do.
One of the great gifts of God-Among-Us, is that Jesus truly knows our tiredness as we try to walk in His footsteps. He understands what it's like to have days that are emotionally draining from broken hearts, as well as the "good kind of tired" from days of great joy. Our days are familiar to Jesus. But oh, what He must not understand about us is that we make time for anything and everything else during our day, to the point of exhaustion, and yet often push that time that He cherishes so much – that time of solitude and silence - completely out of our schedules.
Yes, we do lead busy lives. And yes, there are many things vying for our efforts and attention. But in the hectic pace of our daily schedules, we need to build in personal prayer time, time to relax, time to "get away" so that God can refresh us and empower us. This is necessary and essential. Jesus needed it and so do we. We need to lose ourselves in the deserted places of our lives. The ones who have to have our attention, who need to be healed, who need our guidance, who need our help, will find us. Just like they found Jesus. But we must be wise like Jesus, take time to listen to God. And to be listened to.
Sometimes God comes and finds us. Sometimes we go and find God. There are moments, even amidst our busyness, when the distractions all fall away and God shows up in a powerful, sometimes even dramatic, way. But the rest of the time, even though God is always there, we have to make time to notice by finding our own deserted and quiet place. And, sometimes in our busy, fast-paced life we have to be creative and persistent to find it. Our deserted place can be a New York City subway or bus. It can be in our car or in a waiting room. It could even be a garage or a bathroom. Wherever we can find even those few moments of quiet, we have found a holy place. There can be a lot of other stuff taking place. We just have to recognize that the peace of prayer is not about what's around us; it's a matter of what is within us. If we are too busy to pray, we are simply too busy. As much as a meal or an appointment, prayer and quiet have to a part of life. Those times are usually there, even if unexpected. They just need to be highlighted and given attention.
In the gospel of Mark, five times Jesus took a boat trip to get away or just went down to the sea. Two times He went into the hills. One time He took a walk through the grain fields, and another time we find Him high up a mountain. On two occasions He goes where he wants to be "unknown;” another time He simply, "went home" Still another time we find Him "going beyond the Jordan." His final time to Himself is climaxed with time alone and in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. In the mornings, in the evenings, Jesus kneels. At a time when the options are far from easy, Jesus kneels. In solitude, with intention, Jesus kneels. Jesus kneels and prays to be perfectly in tune with his Father's will.
Discipleship means following . . . following Jesus and matching footprint for footprint. - His way becomes our way of life, Hs teachings become our lessons, His love, His gentleness, His compassion, His mercy, His unconditional love, His ethics, His selflessness, His total dedication to His Father, become the pattern for our lives.
And if this is true, then discipleship also means, like Jesus, finding our own deserted place . . . our solitary space . . . finding our kneeling place.
