In Sunday’s Gospel, Mark tells how Jesus retreated to the desert to be tempted. Jesus, like John the Baptist, preaches repentance. Think about the meaning of baptism and repentance in your own life. Do you seek temptation directly or does it come from ordinary situations of life? Pray for a deeper awareness of the meaning of baptism and ask that God not allow anything in life to tempt you to neglect your responsibilities to others and to yourself.

Jesus heals a paralyzed man lowered to him through a building’s roof in Sunday’s Gospel. Jesus forgives the man’s sins, which starts a controversy with the Jewish leaders. The paralytic says nothing, yet Jesus heals him. Do the actions of the man’s friends tell Jesus something about him? The friends of the man who was paralyzed went to much trouble for him, which signifies that they loved him.

Jesus continues to demonstrate his power over evil by healing the leper in Sunday’s Gospel. When the man found out that he was healed from leprosy, he proclaimed the awesome power of Jesus. Jesus did not only free the man from physical ailment but set him free to give witness to Christ. What hinders us from becoming free to share our faith? Do we have the strength to ask Jesus to set us totally free to serve him wholeheartedly? Ask for total liberation to follow Jesus completely.