Listening Is Better Than Explaining

January 19, 2026 – Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time

Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/011926.cfm)

Most of us want a life that feels safe and predictable. We follow routines, hold on to habits, and protect traditions because they give us a sense of control. We know what to expect, and that feels comforting. But slowly, without noticing it, what once helped us can begin to trap us. We start doing things not because they give life, but simply because “this is how it has always been.”

In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus uses simple images: old cloth, new cloth; old wineskins, new wine. He is not attacking tradition. He is pointing out something deeper. When God is doing something new, old containers may no longer be able to hold it. New wine needs fresh wineskins, not because the old ones are bad, but because they have become rigid.

The same struggle appears clearly in the First Reading from the First Book of Samuel. King Saul follows God’s command only halfway. He defeats the enemy, but keeps what he personally considers useful. When confronted by the prophet Samuel, Saul explains himself, even claiming he did it “for God.” Samuel’s response is sharp and unforgettable, “Obedience is better than sacrifice.” Indeed, God is not impressed by religious excuses. What the Lord desires is a listening heart.

This makes us realize that God desires obedience that flows from a listening and open heart, not from rigid practices that protect our comfort.

Saul thought sacrifice could cover disobedience. The people questioning Jesus thought fasting defined holiness. In both cases, the problem is the same. People believed and were more attached to their way of doing things than to what God was actually asking of them at that moment.

This is where the message becomes very close to our daily life. Sometimes we are like Saul. We obey, but only up to the point where it does not disturb us too much. We pray, but avoid forgiveness. We serve, but refuse correction. We keep traditions, but resist change when God asks us to grow.

Jesus does not come to destroy what is old. He comes to fulfill it. But fulfillment always involves change. New wine stretches us. It questions habits that no longer give life. It exposes excuses that sound religious but hide fear.

God’s invitations often feel uncomfortable because they ask us to listen more deeply and let go of control. But this discomfort is not meant to break us. It is meant to renew us. Like fresh wineskins, we are called to remain flexible, humble, and attentive to God’s voice.

The real question is not, “Am I doing religious things?” The real question is, “Am I truly listening to God today?” As Samuel reminds us, God prefers a heart that listens over hands that perform rituals.

When we allow God to surprise us, we discover that His call, though challenging, always leads to life, healing, and deeper freedom. With that, I leave you two takeaways for today.

First, pause and listen before acting. Ask daily, “Lord, what are You asking of me now, not yesterday?”

Second, let go of one habit that no longer gives life. Replace it with one concrete act of obedience, however small, but begin today. Hinaut pa.