Sunday Micro Retreat – January 22, 2023
As you begin your time of reflection, try to realize that you are standing on holy ground and in the presence of God, who wants to talk to you and listen to you.
Make the Sign of the Cross. The Holy Spirit is opening your heart and mind so the Word of God that you are about to read can flourish in you for God's glory. Pray that you continue to work with his grace. Let the words or your prayer flow from your mind through your heart. Try to "feel" what you are saying.
Is there anything you would like to ask God now? What graces does your heart desire?
Talk to God about it.
Today, we ask for the grace of repentance and true following of Jesus.
Now read the Sunday's Gospel:
Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali,
so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the gentiles—
the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.”
From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishers.
And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two other brothers,
James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
(Matt 4:12-23)
The Word of God touches everyone differently. If there is anything that really stood out for you in this reading, meditate on it.
Go to the depths of your heart and listen to what God is trying to say to you.
Next, let's spend some time with a couple of points that you may consider during this Sunday's Retreat:
1. Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near
Jesus starts his ministry with a clear call to repentance. He goes straight to the point. He knows what the kingdom is and what it means; he also knows that people are not ready to enter it because of where they are in their
relationship with God.
How do you feel when you hear the call to repent? Does it resonate with you, or do you feel like you have nothing to change in your life at this moment? How do you feel when people tell you exactly how they feel about your actions,
your words, and your daily behaviour? Do you feel offended or try to understand their message for you? How do you feel about the teachings of the Church? Do you accept all of them because of your love for God, or do you tend to
reject some as you don't like what they say? How would you feel, or what would you do if Jesus showed up at your home today and said right at the door: "repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."
2. Follow me.
Jesus is not asking the called men for a simple walk along the seashore. He is calling them to discipleship. They may not be fully aware of what exactly this discipleship will involve or how much it will "cost them," but for some reason,
they take a chance and go with Jesus. Imagine how powerful his words must have been that those men left everything and followed Jesus immediately.
Have you ever experienced a profound moment like that? Have you ever clearly heard what Jesus was calling you to do? What was your reaction? what happened next? What was the call about? Did you consult it with others?
Or were you certain that this was what you were meant to do?
You may end this retreat by listing to the song Follow me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIT39NSTmPk
It is good to keep a personal journal in which reflections that stood out for you are recorded. The outcome of those Sunday Micro Retreats is
good material that you can talk about in your spiritual direction.
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