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“Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”Luke 2:41-5
“Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not undergo the test.”Luke 22:46
Today’s mystery is the culmination of Jesus taking complete control of His faith. A child is a reflection of his parents, and in this case it was God and Mary. If I were a betting woman, my money’s on Jesus being the Messiah. No matter what a parent does, however, the child always has free will at the end of the day, and Jesus could have rejected God. Rejection is in many heartbreaking stories we hear among our friends and families, and feel within our own homes. Thankfully, He didn’t reject the teachings of our Lord and, in fact, converted billions to God’s will.
Jesus spent many hours reading the laws of Moses and David and studying with the rabbis, starting with those first three days spent in His father’s house at the age of 12. Throughout the Bible, Jesus reminds us to spend time in prayer, teaching us the Our Father, and directing us in Gethsemane to take a holy hour. Even Jesus didn’t think He could do it all alone, and spent day after day asking the Lord our Father to assist Him in kindness, peace, and patience, some things I think we could each use in our daily lives.
Reflect: When did you start taking control of your own faith?
Reflect: Is there time in the week we can commit more towards prayer, reflection, and learning? You are reading this, so one positive checkmark for the week!
Act: Today, pray the entire Joyful Mysteries, all five decades. Reflect on the journey Jesus had from conception to age 12, birth in the manger to being found in the temple after staying behind from the caravan. Ask God today for a student mentality in your approach to faith. While most of us are not completing the Liturgy of the Hours daily, commit to prayer every single day. Pray we don’t have to face any tests, but if we do, have faith that the Lord will grant us joy.
