what do I intend to do, to become? - thursday after epiphany 2019

Again in this season of Christmas the church continues to manifest, to introduce who Jesus is.  Today we find Jesus in the synagogue.  In Luke’s gospel this is situated at the beginning so that at the outset Luke could already narrate what Jesus intends to do in his lifetime.  Jesus reads from the book of the prophet Isaiah and through this passage he announces the kind of life he would live and the kind of person he will become:  to bring glad tidings to the poor; to proclaim liberty to captives, to bring recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free.”  This was what Jesus intended to do in his lifetime and in his ministry.  He clarified it at the very beginning of his ministry, perhaps not just to the people, but above all he is clarifying it to himself.  What do I intend to do?

Today we are also reminded of our original intentions.  Probably at a certain point in our life, when we were starting for example we made a resolve to create something new, to make a difference – this is what I want to do, this is who I want to be, especially at the start of every year, when we set out to make resolutions for ourselves and for our families. 

Or when you made the decision to become more involved in our parish, what were your intentions? Is the fire, the passion to help still there?  Is the idealism still there?  Jesus reads to us his intentions – what he intends to do and accomplish.  And these defined his entire life.  Let us pray that we too may become more resolved and consistent with our intentions like him.