CP W2 D5 Jesus' Baptism, Temtation and Calling the Disciples (Mark 1:1-20)

(Personal note: I'm currently visiting the Holy Cross Monastery in NY. Follow my journey at... http://www.georgevisitsholycross.blogspot.com/ to see what I'm doing.)

Today we look at the people who helped prepare our faith and the people who are our companions along the journey. These "companions for our journey" are especially important to us at a time of mourning like this.

We are asked to draw two hands... a left hand representing people who prepared our way (similar to Mary, Joseph, John the Baptist and the people in Jesus' synagogue), and a right hand listing the people who share our journey (like Jesus' disciples). I'll spare you my drawing skills, but the people who prepared my way were my parents, a local storekeeper (back when you had neighborhood grocery stores), my youth group advisers, my pastor and an older cousin. The people sharing my journey are the group of J2A youth and leaders, our Men's group, Dean & Vicki, Kristen & John and various friends from this church and other churches.

Today's reading noted how Jesus relied greatly on His companions - both in His early life, and during His ministry with His disciples. His companions for the journey of his ministry included not only the disciples, but also other friends like Mary, Martha and Nicodemus. The grey section in our reading notes that if we loose the will to keep on our journey, it is usually because we become isolated from those who support us.

This is especially important for our group right now as many of you are struggling with comprehending the death of a teenage friend. While it is a difficult time - and the emotions can be raw and hard to deal with - I hope you all can find the space this Sunday to share your feelings with each other (your companions for the journey). I will be with you in prayer.