When reading today’s Gospel, it is important to have the context of what happens immediately preceding and following the verses. Immediately preceding the Gospel, our Lord casts out a demon that His apostles could not cast out. The apostles were “amazed at His every deed” (Lk 9:43). During the Gospel, our Lord tells His apostles to “pay attention to what I am telling you” (Lk 9:44) and then tells them about His death. But the “meaning of this was hidden from them.” (Lk 9:44). Right after the Gospel, “a thought entered into them, which should be greater.” (Lk 9:46).
Sequence of Events
The sequence of events in the Gospel shows us the importance of being vigilant and always paying attention to the ways God is revealing Himself to us. Right before telling His apostles that He was going to die, He cast out a demon that the apostles could not cast out. The demon was being very loud and aggressive with the man he was possessing. Right after revealing his death to them, “a thought entered into them, which should be greater.” (Lk 9:46).
In both of these events, the demons were trying to distract the apostles from the important revelation that Christ gave to them about His death and asked them to pay attention to. The devil will also try to do this with us. He will make a lot of noise and try to distract us from the important ways God is working in our lives. Some good habits that can help us to ignore the noise the devil is making and listen for Gods voice are journaling after daily prayer, doing a daily examen, and spending time every day in silence.
Journaling and Examen
Both journaling after daily prayer and during our daily examen are extremely helpful practices to see how God is working, especially when He may not immediately reveal to you the meaning of certain events in your life. Just like Christ did in the Gospel, God may have certain things He wants you to pay attention to now, but He will not fully reveal the meaning until later. Regularly looking back at your journal will help you see the seeds God has planted and the fruit it becomes.
God reveals Himself to us over time, and if you do not pay attention, you will miss it. He loves you and is intimately involved in your life.
