The Catholic Calendar for Saturday, January 14, 2006
Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
1 Samuel 9:1-4, 17-19; 10:1
Psalm 21:2-7
Mark 2:13-17

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

"Follow me. . .”

“Follow me.” Simple, direct, to the point. There can be no lack of certainty about what Jesus wants. “Follow me.”

How can I follow Him? How am I worthy to follow Him?

Do you ever ask these questions? If so, take heart. Look at the chief criticism levied at Jesus here--He eats with sinners and tax collectors. I don't know about you, but I could certainly fit into that group pretty well.

Jesus didn't race after the Pharisees who were practicing their meticulous ritual purity and heeding the very letter of the law to the last little mark, but who often lost sight of Him who gave the law. No, Jesus went after the sinners, the tax collectors, the people who knew that they weren't going right, but didn't know what to do about it.

“Follow me.” We are made worthy to follow Him by His desire for us. Plain and simple, He wants us, so we are worthy. His love makes us lovable. His desire makes us worthy.

So the next time you hear the whisper or the shout, don't hesitate, don't ask, “Am I worthy?” Because you are. You are worthy because He says so.

- JuandelaCruz
(sriddle415 at yahoo dot com)

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