Living in the Moment
On New Year’s Day in 1960 I vividly remember, as a boy, going to the local shop to buy a comic. As I went out on this bright, sunlit morning I had a real feeling that today I will enjoy every moment as gift. I will make the most of it. If I do this today, living totally in the present, then the rest of the year will be a true blessing for me.
On this first weekend of 2026 my prayer is that I will have the grace to live in God’s gift of the present moment. We are still in the Christmas season and the Gospel reading for this Sunday is the prologue of St John. John calls us to live in the presence of Jesus. Jesus is present to us, He is in our lives. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.
Let this year for us be a time to become better acquainted with the living reality that is Jesus. How do we do this?
Firstly, by spending time with Jesus in prayer every day. I suggest setting aside twenty minutes at the beginning of each day. Then read God’s Word every day. Perhaps this could be reading the Gospel of the day as found in the Mass of the day. There are numerous ways to find the readings. Here is one way: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/word-of-the-day
It is important too for us to rediscover silence. We need to guard our minds from the business and anxiety that distracts us by making time for silence in our day. Reducing pure consumption of mass media helps to avoid the access of information that only confuses the mind and paralyses the will. At all times let us open ourselves up to the will of God. As we read in I Thess. 4:3, This is the will of God, your holiness [sanctification]. Our prayer can be: ‘Lord show me what you want from me.’
Lastly, live a life that takes the incarnation of our God seriously by attending Mass, frequenting the sacraments and finding a way to care for the poor, for they are Christ in a special way. Perhaps read Pope Leo XIV’s first Apostolic Exhortation, Dilexi Te written on the feast of St Francis, last October. It sees the love of Christ incarnated in love for the poor, in caring for the sick, opposing slavery, defending women who experience exclusion and violence, making education available to all, accompanying migrants, charitable giving, working for equality and more.
