Advent 2025: Thu 11 Dec
Mark 1.35-39 Prayer
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: ‘Everyone is looking for you!’
38 Jesus replied, ‘Let us go somewhere else – to the nearby villages – so that I can preach there also. That is why I have come.’ 39 So he travelled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.
You might think that Jesus, being fully divine, would be able to divert that eternal nature into human energy to enable him to work 24/7. Being fully human, however, meant that that would be cheating, because he had to be like us. Jesus the man needed a relationship with Father God no less than we do. Jesus knew that he could not operate when his spiritual tank was empty. He had to seek time alone with Father God, and so do we.
He found a solitary place. He prayed. How do you imagine Jesus praying? Did he use words, or assume a certain posture? Did he speak out loud, or think the words he wanted to say? How did he listen – did he just go silent, or did he look for ways in which Father God might speak to him? Did Jesus use tongues of men and angels (as Paul described it)?
You might not have long to think about this, because already the new disciples were missing him and on the lookout for him. Couldn’t they wait until he came back for breakfast, or had they decided that Jesus was needed now because of the crowds that were building up yet again? They tracked him down. I find it interesting that they did, because the impression they gave was that “everyone” was looking for him. Perhaps there might have been some exaggeration brought on by their anxiety at not finding him in the house that morning?
No time for Jesus to reply to that. It’s already time to move on to other villages. Jesus has a mission to preach.
Who else in the Gospel narrative went out early in the morning, while it was still dark, and what did they find?
How might you find time to be alone with Father God?
Was the region rife with demons?
Father God, perhaps I tend to track myself down and take myself off to the busy-ness of the day before I have spent time with you. Forgive me, I pray. Amen.
A reflection on Jesus’ mission.
Paul