This gospel reflection is based on Mark 12:28b-34.
Not Far Away
I have studied long and prayed Tried to follow God’s commands Considered always how to live the law And how to serve God with these hands
But now Jesus asks me how I love For I follow him with all my heart And my neighbor as myself From these commands I never part
Yet these things are hard to live As I move from moments to many days Challenged by so much so often Pulled away in so many ways
I worship and fast and pray aloud Humbly offering myself to him To hear, to serve, to follow this Jesus As my new life with him will soon begin
This Jesus I have followed long Is truly the his Son; the One For whom we have awaited and longed And our redemption has now begun
My life now is becoming new A burnt offering now is my soul As I move not away but toward the new This Jesus, salvation, my goal
For he is the fulfillment of all The prophesies of so many over time Not to end all but to fulfill the law To redeem, to embrace this love sublime
Dear Jesus, you are the embodiment of all love Help me to avoid all that pulls me away That I may follow, leaving former life behind To live the love of God and neighbor Which is always gentle and kind