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Join us as we reflect, ponder, and pray together inspired by today's Gospel.

Today's Gospel: Luke 4:14-22

 

New Year inspires us to make resolutions to become better versions of ourselves. We are one week into the New Year. How’s that resolution going? Did you make one? Don’t worry, I’m not going to ask you to re-dedicate yourself to a year of fitness, keto, or Kondo.

Instead, I’m asking you to abandon your New Year’s resolution unless you can answer this question affirmatively:

Does your resolution require obedience to God?

In today’s Gospel Jesus begins His public ministry with an act of obedience to the Father. In context of the Scripture, Jesus just endured forty days of temptation and returns to Galilee anointed with the Spirit to begin his public ministry. By the time Jesus enters his hometown of Nazareth, Luke shares that news of Jesus had spread throughout the whole region (Lk 4:15).

Picture how a buzz Nazareth was with news that Jesus, the thirty-year-old unmarried son of the carpenter, who duked it out with the devil, was home. This homecoming was Jesus’ new year, and all eyes were on him.

Luke details many of Jesus’ actions: dining, healing, calming seas. Here, Luke specifies that upon arriving in Nazareth, Jesus “went according to his custom into the synagogue on the Sabbath day” (Lk 4:16). With a captive audience of hometown onlookers, Jesus could have done anything. He chose to demonstrate an act of obedience to the Father; He kept the commandment to remember the sabbath.

Jesus began His ministry with obedience and and never stopped obeying the will of Father. Through this obedience, He redeemed the world. When we obey the will of the Father, God blesses our obedience and works His will in our lives in ways that we could never have imagined. Let’s start our new year with obedience.

 

Ponder:


How will you obey the will of the Father today?

 

Pray:


Lord, we praise You for calling us to serve You. Bless our New Year with a zeal to obey Your holy will. Amen.

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I’m asking you to abandon your New Year’s resolution unless you can answer this question affirmatively: Does your resolution require obedience to God? #dailygospel



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Copyright 2021 Elizabeth Tomlin

About the Author

Elizabeth Tomlin

Elizabeth Tomlin

Elizabeth is the author of Joyful Momentum: Building and Sustaining Vibrant Women’s Groups (Ave Maria Press), General Counsel for the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, and director of stewardship for the Military Council of Catholic Women, where she previously served as the president and as director of faith formation. Elizabeth is a catechist and speaker, and blogs at JoyfulMomentum.org.