Pursue Jesus!

Gospel Reflection for February 5, 2024

“After making the crossing, they came to land at Gennesaret and tied up there. As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him. They scurried about the surrounding country and began to bring in the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak; and as many as touched it were healed.” (Mk. 6:53-56 NABRE)

The people pursued Jesus wherever He went. Wherever they heard He was, they chased after Him in faith, knowing and trusting in the power and authority of Jesus, and believing that He could heal them. When word reached these people about the wonderous ways of Jesus, they were not indifferent towards Him. They did not disregard this good news, judge it as untrue, or as not worth their time or consideration. Rather, these people heard about Jesus and pursued Him in faith. It did not matter where the Lord was, nor how far away He was, those who heard about Him were willing to put in the effort and time that was required in order to travel to Him.

Do we do this today? Do we pursue Jesus in faith, and put in the effort to seek Him out? Or are we sometimes indifferent towards the Lord, and fail to actively grow closer to Him?

In our busy day to day lives, we often become distracted from our relationship with Jesus. We often put other aspects of our lives before the Lord.

Yet, the people in today’s Gospel dropped everything to pursue Jesus. They put their lives on hold and left them behind in order to seek Him out.

May we follow the example of the people in today’s Gospel who put Jesus first and didn’t hold back in expressing their faith in Him. They traveled in order to hear His words and to be healed. May we seek after the Lord in our own lives with the same faithful eagerness! May we pursue the Lord, crave to hear His words, and come to know Him through growing in a deeper relationship with Jesus.