consumed

Opening Prayer: Risen Jesus, if I am going to be consumed by anything today, let me be consumed by you.  Amen.

Scripture: John 20:10-18

Journal: What is consuming your heart and mind and attention these days?  How is that keeping you from being able to recognize the Risen Jesus?

Reflection: It is possible to get so consumed with what’s going on in our lives that we miss the fact that the Risen Jesus is standing right in front of us.  Just ask Mary.  She was so full of her own grief and sadness and pain that Jesus was standing right in front of her and she didn’t realize it.  Which just goes to show that when our inner space gets so full of our own worries and cares and concerns, there is just not room for anything else.  Our vision gets so blurred and distorted that it keeps us from being able to see Jesus standing right in our midst.

The sad reality is that we allow many things to consume our hearts and minds other than Jesus.  And when we do that, we lose our ability to recognize him.  We can become consumed with our hurts and our sadness and our pain, like Mary was, that it only turns us in upon ourselves.  Or we can allow our fears and our worries and our anxiety to have free reign within us, which makes us the worst possible version of ourselves.  Or we can even allow “good” things to consume us—work, success, achievements, endeavors, and even ministry.  And when we allow these “good” things to consume us, they are good no longer.  They just become diversions and distractions from the one thing—Jesus.

So instead of allowing all of these other things to consume us, let us be consumed by Christ Jesus instead.  Let us fix our hearts and mind on him.  Let us never neglect him—the one thing—for the many things.  For whatever consumes us, other than Jesus, becomes a hindrance rather than a help.

Prayer

Closing Prayer: Lord Jesus, help me to never let the concerns and cares and joys and struggles of this life consume me and keep me from being able to recognize you.  Amen.