The associated reading for this reflection can be found in your Every Sacred Sunday Mass journal or online here.
When reflecting on today’s readings, the thought that came to mind was that I want to be a person that is eternity minded. Like the people of Nineveh, who turned from their evil ways at the sound of God’s message from Jonah, or the Psalmist who supplicates, “Your ways, O Lord, make known to me,” or Paul who speaks with urgency, “time is running out…for the world in its present form is passing away," I wish to keep my eyes Heavenward.
It’s edifying how these first people of God are so eternity-minded and Kingdom-focused. I can imagine that it has probably always been a temptation for man to remain on a latitudinal plane of horizontal thinking and living. It’s challenging to live as one devoted to God and eternity, especially when our senses can’t quite grasp what it is we are living for.
But to live grounded in both temporal and spiritual awareness of who we are as God’s children is the task for the Christian. I think of Simon, Andrew, and James, who were all good Jews with their lives steeped in the Scriptures. When the Messiah, for whom their ancestors had been praying for generations, finally came to meet them in their time and space, they were ready to say yes.
You are only prepared for what you practice. I pray that all Catholics — especially myself — can practice the faith by keeping an eternity-focused mind. Let us be worthy of the faith of our ancestors.
Dr. Chelsea Harkins is a daughter of the King, wife to Ryan, and mother to 2 little boys. When she is not hardcore momming, she is serving mothers at her holistic pelvic PT practice, Dallas Pelvic Health. You can find her on Instagramand Facebook.