Today's first reading is from James 3: 1-10. He paints a very negative picture of the tongue, describing it as "restless evil, full of deadly poison." He goes on to say that "with it we curse men who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth," he says, "come blessing and cursing." And then proclaims: "This need not be so." What if we spoke positively of the tongue as an instrument given to us by God to proclaim the Word, to give God thanks and praise; as an instrument to speak words of love, compassion and forgiveness to one another! We can become what we focus on. Let's focus on the good that we are capable of, while, of course, acknowledging the evil but not become obsessed with our inclination toward such!
In today's Gospel, Mark 9: 2-13, Jesus takes Peter, James and John with him "up a high mountain apart by themselves. and he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white...Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus...[A] cloud came, casting a shadow over them; then from the cloud came a voice, 'This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.' Suddenly looking around, the disciples no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them."
Imagine being Peter, James or John and witnessing the transfiguration, seeing Elijah and Moses talking with the transfigured Lord, as well as hearing a voice say: "This is my beloved Son. Listen to him."
May we take time to be alone with Jesus, communicating with Him. May we also sit in silence or solitude listening for the voice of the Lord speaking to us! It definitely is not a waste of time to go apart to communicate with the Lord and allow God to communicate with us, spreading His banner of love over us. Time with Jesus is time well spent!
