A day in the life of Jesus - how to prioritize our time

I heard this sermon on the weekend. It's part one of a two part mini series called "Maxed Out - Rebelling Against the Culture of Excess". Part one is on prioritizing our time.

The scripture reading was from Mark 1:28-39
28 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee. 29 As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they immediately told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them. 32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was. 35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” 38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” 39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

It essentially described one day in the life of Jesus:

• Jesus was busy as his popularity grew
• He was busy healing people and casting out demons
• He went to the synagogue because it was the Sabbath (as going to "church" on Sunday for us)
• He hanged out with his disciples and on this day, they went to the home of Peter and Andrew
• He healed Peter's mother-in-law who had a fever
• He turned that house into a clinic where "the whole town" gathered at the door
• And he got up before the light was out and went off to the solitary place to pray again the next day

So imagine how hectic his day had been and yet he did not ignore the precious time for prayer - alone with His Father. Perhaps that was how his energy was recharged and instead of staying back in comfort he decided to go off to nearby villages to preach the Good News to the people there too.

And He told His disciples: "That is why I have come."

This is the big question for me, isn't it? Why have I come? Why did God give me this day? How do I use the same 24 hours (the same as everyone else) differently to fulfill the purpose God has intended for me?

The key principle seems to boil down to making choices wisely - when to say yes and when to say no. Learning from Jesus, the pastor referred us to Matthew 11:28-30
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

He showed us a picture of what a yoke was (like this one from Wikipedia):

A yoke is a wooden beam normally used between a pair of oxen or other animals to enable them to pull together on a load when working in pairs, as oxen usually do. But what is the yoke of Jesus? I found this blog by this Benedictine monk helpful. He helped me to look at this picture again, he wrote,
"Where do you see Christ? My problem was—and still is sometimes—that I was viewing Christ as the driver of the oxen under the yoke. That’s a terribly distorted view of obedience. The Latin root of the word “obedience” means “listen.” So, to obey is to listen. As you know, the heart of any healthy relationship is listening. Obedience is a relationship in which those involved genuinely listen and respond to one another in love. It is listening and love in action. It is more about our relationship with God and one another than it is about simply following commands Put another way, obedience to God is true freedom."

So what do I do when I am maxed out? I will go to Jesus in prayer. But my prayer is not just to ask for help or less stress, my prayer is to listen to Him. Reading the scripture daily has become my habit but I must say I don't listen as well as I should. Lord, help me to listen to you. Thank you for your love and help me to see that your commands are love in action for me. I have experienced it before and I know I will experience it again, the rest and comfort that will come.

"And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7)