Friday after Epiphany

The report about him spread all the more, and great crowds assembled to listen to him and to be cured of their ailments, but he would withdraw to deserted places to pray.

After curing the leper, great crowds come to him seeking to be cured of their ailments, but Jesus withdraws from them to pray. This action reminds us of the need to maintain our prayer life and keep our focus on doing God’s Will. Sometimes when we try to do too much, we can lose sight of why we do works of charity and mercy. Yes, Jesus could have easily healed everyone he came into contact with, but he doesn’t. This is not because he doesn’t care about the suffering of others, but rather because he wanted to keep the focus on the wondrous power of God. If he healed everyone, then the miraculous would have become mundane and lost its potency as a sign of God’s Forgiveness and Mercy. Jesus wanted the crowds to come to him because they believed and hoped in his message, not because they expected him to cure their every ailment.

Do we maintain our prayer life even in the midst of our daily lives? Do we seek a quiet place to pray and converse with God? When we pray, do we come to God in a selfless spirit of faith and hope or in a selfish spirit of expectation?

O Lord, lead us to a deserted place where we can talk to you in our prayers.

Amen.