Lenten Reflection - OSA Volunteer Style

The following is a reflection I did for the readings of today.

Hos 14: 2-20 / Ps 81: 6c-11b, 14-17 / Mk 12: 28-34

Throughout this year we are asked to be the ones who need to comfort others, to have all the answers, and to always do what is right. Yet, where do we turn in times of need? Where are the answers to our questions? Why can't the people we serve have better lives? In today's readings, we find the message needed for us to comfort our worries and fears. The answer to all of our questions is found in God, a God who loves.

At orientation we heard the phrase “One mind and one heart intent upon God”. Have we been living our volunteer year with one mind and one heart towards God? Where in our lives have we recognized God's love for us? God wants us to come to him, just as the Psalms remind us: “In distress you called, and I rescued you; Unseen, I answered you in thunder...If only my people would hear me, and Israel walk in my ways”. We are the obstacle to this love. It is up to us, to hear the Lord and to love Him in return. Let us not forget the greatest commandment as told by Mark in today's Gospel: “Therefore you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength; You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

As we continue to celebrate the life of Jesus and prepare for his death and resurrection, let the answers come from within. A love of God that is rooted within will lead to self discovery, help to strengthen our communities, and settle all of our worries.

~ ob