Jesus Salazar LC
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Christ, our King.
Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
Give me, O Lord, a restless heart that eagerly seeks you; do not let me become accustomed to you.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to Luke 2:41-51
Jesus“ parents used to go to Jerusalem every year for the Passover festivities. When the child was twelve years old, they went to the feast, according to custom. When those days were past, they returned; but the child Jesus remained in Jerusalem, unbeknownst to his parents. Believing that he was in the caravan, they went a day's journey; then they looked for him, and not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem in search of him. On the third day they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, listening to them and asking them questions. All who heard him were amazed at his intelligence and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, ”My son, why have you been like this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you in anguish“. And he said to them, ”Why have you been looking for me, do you not know that I must be about my Father's business? They did not understand the answer he gave them. Then he returned with them to Nazareth and remained subject to their authority. His mother kept all those things in her heart.
Word of the Lord
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
In our life we can get used to many things and people thinking “there they are and there they will continue to be”. So we can get used to Jesus and look for him only when we remember that we occupy him.
Something similar happened to Mary and Joseph, not out of forgetfulness, nor because they did not want him, but because they thought “he will be there, he will come soon”. When we become aware of the supposed absence of Jesus, we can take two attitudes. The first is the simplest for a conformist heart, to forget about a God that I feel is far away. The second comes from a restless heart in search of peace and truth: I want to look for him!
If Mary and Joseph had had a conformist heart, they would have limited themselves to asking the people in the caravan; but they took a step further, they turned back on the road in their search. Sometimes it is necessary to go back a little on the road of our life to recognize those moments when we have had God closer to us and not only remember them, but seek to live better ones. Jesus never really moved away, it was his parents who walked a long time without him.
Finding Jesus is very simple, it only requires a restless heart, which at the same time keeps the experiences like Mary's and wants to have the experience of walking with the Lord. We find Jesus in the brother: “Whatever you do to one of the least of these, you did it to me” (Mt 25:40); in the Gospel: “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (Jn 14:23); on the cross: “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (Jn 14:23).“(Jn 14:23); in the cross: ”If anyone would follow me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (Mt 16:24); and finally in the Eucharist: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him" (Jn 6:56). (Jn 6:56)
«The Gospel concludes with this expression: “The child grew and became strong, full of wisdom, and the grace of God was with him” (v. 40). May the Lord Jesus, through Mary's maternal intercession, grow in us, and increase in each of us the desire to meet him, the custody of amazement and the joy of gratitude. Then others will be attracted by his light, and will be able to encounter the mercy of the Father».
(Homily of H.H. Francis, February 2, 2016).
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
I will seek to be aware that Christ is truly present in each person around me and/or I will take a few minutes to contemplate God's presence in the Eucharist.
Farewell
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
