Moving On

Reflection Date: September 02, 2026 | Wednesday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time
Daily Readings: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9; Luke 4:38-44

 Children of God:
There is a beautiful story about St. Ezekiel Moreno and the affection he received from the people he served in the Philippines. 

When he was reassigned away from Las Piñas in 1879, the townspeople and parishioners strongly opposed his transfer and appealed to church authorities to let him stay. 

Similar appeals were later made by the faithful in Santo Tomás, Batangas, when he was moved again, though neither request was granted by his religious superiors.

However, Saint Ezekiel obeyed and returned to Manila to serve as a general preacher of his religious order. 

His ministry continued in other places, including Santa Cruz in Manila, and later in Bacoor and Imus in Cavite, where he served during the difficult years of the cholera epidemic. 

Indeed, there are times when people loved a priest so much that they wanted him to stay exactly where he was. 

Yet Saint Ezekiel knew well by heart that his vocation was bigger than one parish and that obedience could require him to leave people he dearly loved. 

He moved on, not because the people no longer mattered, but precisely because the mission continued to call him elsewhere.

In the gospel story of Luke, Jesus healed Simon's mother-in-law and brought healing to many people who came to him. 

The people in Capernaum naturally wanted him to remain with them because they experienced his presence as a source of healing, hope, and blessing. 

But Jesus told them, “To the other towns also I must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God, because for this purpose I have been sent” (Luke 4:43). 

Jesus did not remain simply because one community needed him. 

He moved on because other people also needed to hear the Good News.

What are our inspirations for today? 

First, being loved in one place does not mean we are meant to stay there forever.

Jesus could have remained in Capernaum because people were looking for him and because his presence brought healing. 

They wanted him to stay, but Jesus knew very well that his mission extended beyond the people who already knew him. 

This can be difficult for us because we naturally become attached to people, places, routines, and relationships. 

When we feel appreciated somewhere, we want to remain there. 

When people tell us that they need us, we feel important. 

When we become comfortable, leaving can feel like losing something valuable.

But there are moments when life calls us to move: a job changes, a family situation requires a new beginning, a religious assignment takes us somewhere else, or a responsibility ends after years of service. 

Moving on simply means that the good we received in one place can become something we carry into another place.

Being loved in one place does not mean we are meant to stay there forever.

Second, sometimes leaving is another way of continuing the mission.

We sometimes think that our usefulness ends when we leave a particular place. 

We may say, “They need me there,” or “I have already built something there,” or “Nobody will understand me in the new place.” 

Those feelings are understandable, especially when we have invested years of our lives in a community.

But God can use the experience we gained in one place to bless people in another. 

The lessons, friendships, sacrifices, failures, and successes we carry with us become part of the mission. 

Sometimes God does not ask us to abandon the past; God asks us to carry its blessings forward. 

What we learned yesterday can become someone else's blessing tomorrow.

Sometimes leaving is another way of continuing the mission.

As we reflect, we ask ourselves: Is there something or someone I am holding on to even though life is inviting me to move forward? 

Can I accept that leaving a familiar place does not mean that the love and memories I experienced there disappear? Where is God inviting me to bring what I have learned and received so that it can become a blessing to others?

Children of God:
The Gospel reminds us that Jesus did not stay where he was most wanted. 

He moved because other people also needed to hear the Good News. 

We can love a place deeply and still know that our mission is calling us somewhere else. 

May we have the courage to leave when we are called to leave, the humility to begin again when we are sent somewhere new, and the gratitude to carry with us the people and experiences that shaped us. 

And may we remember that wherever God sends us, there is always someone who needs the Good News we are called to bring.