2025/08/10 SCRIPTURE REFLECTION
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
- Christa Kingsley, Manager of Social Justice & Outreach
Today’s readings and Gospel remind me to reflect on what truly matters in life and whether my actions align with the calling to build God’s Kingdom. In other words, I need God to be my highest priority. I have often struggled the most in life when I lose sight of this priority. When asked which commandments are most important, Jesus said we must love God with all our heart, soul and mind and, we must love our neighbor as ourselves. These are very clear instructions, but to follow Him you must walk with Him in service to love others through our daily actions
Developing a healthy spiritual life is like exercising the body. If I want to be fit and healthy, I need to exercise regularly. This will prepare my body for the life ahead and whatever physical tasks are demanded. It is the same for my soul, if I want to be spiritually healthy and aligned with Jesus, I need to spend time with Him in prayer to prepare for the journey ahead. The Gospel this week speaks to this preparedness directly and adds an element of the unknown. Just like life, our spiritual journey contains many unknowns. We do not know how long we have before God calls us home or how long before Jesus returns. We must prepare ourselves every day to welcome Jesus.
Perhaps the line in this Gospel that resonated the most with me was “…where your treasure is there also will your heart be.” If we are mindful of where our treasure lies, then we can cultivate generosity not just with our possessions, but with our time and attention. When we make space for God through prayer and reflection, we are choosing to invest in what truly matters. This intentional living, even amidst the challenges of daily life, is what prepares us to meet God whenever we are called home.
Our world is full of distractions, many of which are enjoyable and healthy like time with family and friends, celebrating life’s milestones or sharing a meal together. Jesus did all these things in His life here on earth. If these worldly priorities get to be so demanding that I cannot find time for silence, prayer and reflection then I struggle to make the right choices for God. Some days are very busy but just like daily exercise, the daily ritual of setting aside time for prayer (reading the Bible, saying a rosary, attending Mass, going to Adoration or simply meditating in silence) helps me to respond to Christ’s calling.
In the end, I hope my spiritual journey will have prepared me to see Jesus when He returns. I will continue to strive to follow Him by living each day intentionally with love and gratitude and to ask God to guide me toward His Son Jesus. Perhaps we can all ask ourselves these three questions each day: “What are my priorities?” “Have I made God the center of them?” “Do my actions align with these priorities?” “How can I make time for Jesus today?”