Years ago, I had a revelation: For months, I was so busy serving people that I didn’t have much time to pray.  I never missed daily Mass or the Liturgy of the Hours, but my mental prayer decreased significantly.  All my mentors said that that was normal for that season of my life.  However, one Monday, my sabbath and day of rest, I went through the whole day and still didn’t do my mental prayer.  Then I realized that the reason I wasn’t praying was not because I was too busy, it was because I didn’t want to pray.

The sabbath revealed my heart.  What I did on my day of rest showed what I really love.  I found time to sleep, eat, do the minimum of prayer, be with other people, but my love for Jesus was poor.  This realization hurt because I love Jesus; it was helpful because I knew then what I had to do to show Him that I love Him.

The sabbath reveals our heart.  What we do on Sunday shows what we love: sleep, Mass, relaxation.  However, if we skip Mass, I think it’s because our love for Jesus is poor—if that bothers us, that’s because we love Him, and now we have the solution to increase that love!  This also applies to people: There are people we love but ignore on Sunday.

Let’s reflect on the Gospel in four parts: 1) “The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught” (Mk 6:30).  They return from their first mission of exorcising demons, healing, and teaching, and ‘gathered around Jesus.’

When I was a teenager, one of my youth leaders told us how, when we look at most homes, the chairs in the living room are all aimed at the TV—it’s around that that we gather; in the dining room, we gather around each other; in the church, we gather around the altar.  On Sunday, to love Jesus or people, we need to gather around them.

2) “He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’  For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat” (6:31).  In the Old Testament, it was God Who gave the Jewish people rest (Ex 33:14; Deut 12:10; Ps 95:11), which doesn’t mean inactivity, but appreciating all the gifts God offers us, looking on all that God has made with a joyous delight (Cf. Dies Domini, 11).  Now, Jesus gives us this rest because He’s God.

Here’s the point: There are many things we do that don’t give us the rest Jesus offers.  Sleep is a foundation of our lives but some of us are sleep deprived, sometimes because we stay up late trying to be happy with things that don’t make us happy.

A few weeks ago, some Grade 7s from our school were setting up for an event, and, at one point, they were all in a circle facing each other, but on their phones!  So, I said to them, ‘That’s good!  That’s what I want!  Don’t talk to each other!  Just focus on your phone.  And, when you get home, put it on the desk, bow down, and say, ‘Yes, Master, whatever you want, Master.’”  They’re a great group and got the joke.  But, our phones are a false god and offer no rest.  One solution is: When we go to bed, spend more time with Jesus than iPhone 15.  Only Jesus gives peace of soul.

3) “And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves” (6:32).  Jesus specified in the prior verse that they were to go to this ‘deserted place,’ which in Greek, is eremon, from which we get the word ‘hermit,’ and it’s also translated as secluded, lonely, or the wilderness.  This is where Jesus goes to pray alone with the Father.

Some weeks ago, Deacon Andrew told me how, when he’s at home and wants to pray, he goes to his parked car and prays there.  I said, ‘I used to do that, too!’

This is the opposite of going on vacation, trying to see everything, and when we get back, people ask, ‘How was your vacation?’  ‘Tiring.’  Jesus doesn’t say, ‘Come away to a noisy place.’  The human person needs more quiet.

4) “Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them.  As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things” (Mk 6:33-34).  Jesus interrupts their rest in order to serve, but right after this, He will go up a mountain to pray and rest in the Father.

The point on which we want to focus is Jesus’ ‘compassion.’  As mentioned before, the word for ‘compassion’ is related to the Hebrew word for a mother’s womb, because we feel for other people.  The apostles need rest, but they have a heart for these needy people.

One of the goals of Sunday is that we rest so well that we’re eager to serve on Monday!  If we’re depleted and don’t want to serve on Monday, there’s a problem and we need to find out why.  Sunday is meant to be restful, so that we have the heart to serve others.

So, we come back to our heart.  Here are the two minimum practices we do to show our love for Jesus.  1) Always go to Mass; to miss Sunday Mass in order to go on vacation, play sports, sleep in, etc., is a mortal sin; 2) Avoid unnecessary work on Sunday.

When we make travel plans, we always find out where there will be Mass.  If we’re invited to go to a place where there is no Mass, we change our travel plans so that we can make it.

And question: When we celebrate Mass on Saturday night, do we do it to get it over with, so that Sunday can be free?  It’s something people have told me.  While it’s good that we’re fulfilling Jesus’ commands, the better spirit would be to enjoy Mass and see it as the center of Sunday—this is something to ponder.

When it comes to unnecessary work on Sunday, we’re talking about work related to our job, so that we’re free to focus on Jesus.

How many of us know the film Chariots of Fire?  If we don’t, we’ll probably recognize its theme song, which I’ve asked the Hospitality Team to play after Mass.  Now, when you hear it, please remember this: It’s based on the story of British Olympian and devout Christian Eric Liddell, who, in the 1924 Olympics, refused to run in the 100m event because it was held on Sunday.  Despite all the pressure from his government and the media, he decided to run in the 400m race, which was held on a weekday, and won.

As Catholics, we can race on Sunday, provided we don’t miss Mass, but, his decision was publicized around the world and everyone admired his conviction, which came from his heart.

On the morning of his race, someone on his team handed him a note that said, “In the old book it says: ‘He that honours me I will honour.’  Wishing you the best of success always”.  The Sabbath reveals our heart.