Tuesday of Week 8 in Ordinary Time (Year I)
Ecclesiasticus 35:2-15 | Psalm 49(50):5-8,14,23 | Mark 10:28-31
At that time Peter began to tell Jesus, ‘What about us? We have left everything and followed you.’ (Mark 10:28)
To put this in context, Jesus had just claimed that “it’s impossible for man to save himself, but with God, everything is possible.” (Mark 10:27)
It must have been a very disturbed Peter who made this outburst, as would any loyal subordinate in this day and age who followed his CEO through thick and thin, only to discover that their latest startup on which they’d bet their fortunes was doomed to failure.
Sometimes, in the dead of night, when I find myself sitting at my computer for hours on end, having an idea for the next day’s blog but not the right words to go with it, I too wonder if all this is worth it. Surely my time could be better spent on my money-making projects – at least, I’ve had others tell me this repeatedly.
But then I soldier on, compelled by something yet unseen, and console myself with the thought that I couldn’t be productive in my work at this hour anyway. Every time I’ve ever written code in the dead of night, it turned out to be confused and full of bugs in the harsh light of the next day.
And so, just before Lent begins, I’ll keep doing what I’ve done for the last 10 months: Leave everything secular behind for a few hours, and follows Jesus through scripture wherever He chooses to lead me.
Amen.