Come Away And Rest With Jesus - New Evangelizers

In today’s Gospel reading from Mark, the disciples have just returned from a teaching mission to the villages in the area where they were traveling with Jesus. They had followed their instructions to preach repentance and had anointed the sick, curing them. They were full of excitement for all they had seen and accomplished, but they were also very tired. With all the activity surrounding Jesus, the crowds coming and going, they could not even eat, let alone rest. So Jesus sent them off by themselves to a deserted place.
How often do we feel like the disciples did in our own lives as we hurry from home to work and back again? Those with families juggle school and their children’s many activities, trying to squeeze in “quality time” with their children. Eating in the car can replace the family meal all too easily. And if, like so many parents, you are also trying to serve in your parish, you might quickly find yourself worn out and weary, resenting the service you signed up for so gladly. Do you fall into bed at night, too tired to even pray, worried about the things you did not accomplish today, which now must be added to tomorrow’s list of duties?
Like the disciples in today’s Gospel, is Jesus calling you to come away for a while and rest with Him? Time alone with God in prayer has always been a necessary part of the Catholic Christian life. If we are too busy to sit down for prayer our conversation with Christ is like a telephone that is off the hook. The attempt to communicate is there, but both parties get nothing but the busy signal of all those distractions.
There is a remedy. The fact that we are bothered by this is a grace, the gentle tug of Jesus calling us away from our busy lives to a deserted place. There we can rest in Him, pray, and let Him heal us. With Lent beginning on Wednesday, our thoughts are naturally turned toward our relationship with Christ and our longing to grow closer to Him. Take some time this season to go away to a quiet place so that God’s voice can become audible again. Retreat houses are ideal for this, but if that is out of reach, a day at home with no electronics can restore the quiet needed for prayer and rest.

Copyright 2016, Carol Ann Chybowski

Carol Ann Chybowski

Carol Ann Chybowski is a long time member of the Catholic Writers Guild. She has published book reviews at various websites and appears in two volumes of A Community of Voices: An Anthology of Santa Barbara. When not busy about her parish, Carol Ann can be found knitting, gardening, or on horseback.