+JMJ
A Contemplation From The Anointing At Bethany
I have always loved this passage from scripture, but have also struggled with it in the past. It is beautiful outpouring of love and devotion to Our Lord, but always stirs a little confusion in my heart. Obstacles come up when I put myself into this scene, such as me being unable to touch Him, me being too timid to pour the oil, me being worried about the other people in the room besides Jesus…. the list goes on….
But the following contemplation revealed to me that my mind was keeping me from fulling realizing the burning love present. My mind was too busy being worried about silly things that I couldn’t move myself forward towards Jesus.
The Anointing At Bethany
Now when Jesus was in Bethany in the house of Simon the Leper, a woman came up to Him with an alabaster jar of costly perfumed oil and poured it on His head while He was reclining at table. When the disciples saw this, they were indignant and said, “Why this waste? It could have been sold for much, and the money given to the poor.” Since Jesus knew this, He said to them, “Why do you make trouble for the woman? She has done a good thing for me. The poor you will always have with you; but you will not always have me. In pouring this perfumed oil upon my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. Amen, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be spoken of, in memory of her.”
-Matthew 26:6-13
My Contemplation
I put myself into the scene as the woman with the jar of perfume. I stand before Him hesitant, but He motions for me to proceed.
The room goes quiet as the apostles watch me confused. I pull the lid from the jar and the whole room is filled with the sweet aroma of the oil. I kneel down behind Him and carefully tip the jar to pour the oil gently over His head.
Just as the oil touches His divine head, the image of Him crowned with thorns flashes into my mind and I can feel the searing pain radiating in my temples and around my whole head.
The searing pain of all the thoughts I have that are not of Him. The distracted thoughts. The uncharitable thoughts. The prideful thoughts. The vain thoughts. The impure thoughts. I see how His crown of thorns atones for all these specifically.
All of a sudden the oil upon His head catches fire. I am terrified at first, but they do not harm Him in any way. They stayed confined to His body leaving the room, and everyone in it, untouched. They blazed incredibly hot but it was not painful to be near Him. I can see they started from the furnace of His Sacred Heart. I beg Him to shower me in them, to engulf me in them, to be consumed in them.
It is that heat that silences the sinful thoughts rolling around in my mind. It is their heat that keeps me focused on Him.
Sin Begins In The Mind
This contemplation showed me how much my mind wanders to things that are not of God. How undisciplined my mind truly is. How much work I have ahead rein it in.
Too often I think my internal thoughts are for me alone. I forget that the Lord hears them. He knows the things I wish to hide from those around me, and from Him if I am being completely honest. I try, too often, to put myself before Him as perfect, when I most certainly am not, but He knows my true self.
Sin is first committed in the mind. That is where it is formulated. That is where consent happens. That is where the battle begins. The whispers of the devil enter the mind and begin to populate, if we allow them too. Then our will either concedes to the performance of the sin or we reject it.
We can win the battle when it is a tiny thought then, by rejecting it early, before the mind has too much time to cultivate it. Sounds simple enough…. but I sure struggle with it. I let it go a little farther…. then a little farther…. instead of dismissing it, putting it out of my mind, and turning back to Jesus.
What can we do?
There a few things we can do to bring our focus back to Jesus and keep our minds guarded against the temptations of the devil.
Read and Meditate on Sacred Scripture
I like to read and meditate on my daily gospel in the morning. This puts it at the forefront of my mind to start my day. This will then allow me to keep bringing myself back to the gospel every time I find my mind on things that could lead to sin, or are sinful themselves.
Try to get up a little earlier this week and spend 15 minutes reading the gospel of the day and meditating on it.
Read About The Saints (Especially their prayer lives)
I love learning about the Saints! Their lives are incredible examples of the love of God made visible to us. They are the champions of this life rewarded with the crown of eternal life in heaven with our Lord. They are our hero’s and heroines. The people we need to look to for examples in following Christ.
Take some time to learn about a new Saint this week, with a special focus on their prayer lives. Look for ways to implement their forms of prayer into your own life.
Keep Yourself Busy
Idleness is the leavening agent in the recipe of sin. When we are bored our minds are much more likely to drift to our sinful ways, giving the devil a door to enter in and tempt us.
Turn the tv off and limit your time on social media this week. Make a to-do list and check some things off of it.
Spiritual Reading
This category I tend to think of as educational. Books about the teaching of the Church. Books about prayer. Books about church history. Books about Catholic Spirituality.
Pick up a new book this week that has to do with church teaching, the church fathers, the explanation of the Holy Mass, or Bible study.
Works of Mercy
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church works of mercy are “charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbor in his spiritual and bodily necessities.” (CCC 2447)
This kind of goes in line with keeping yourself busy. Filling your time by doing good for others is a good way to keep your mind focused on the Lord and put a wall around the mind to keep the devil out.
Volunteer your time this week to help others. Donate food to your local food pantry. Go through your closet and donate your gently used clothing to a local shelter. Serve your family at home in a special way.
We are made in the image of God, not physically, but in our ability to think and reason. Because of this the devil tries endlessly to infect our minds with his lies and evil. If he can draw our minds the body will follow without strict diligence, discipline, and the love of God.
This makes it very important to concentrate on our Lord and the love he holds for each one of us. Use His burning love to refocus your mind and draw you into His divine protection.
Thrive in Jesus, my Friends!
Do you drink your mind wandering often? Do you have trouble focusing on Jesus? What have you found that helps bring you back to Him?
Leave me a comment and let me know!