In the gospel lesson (Mark 8:27-38) Jesus sets Peter, his disciples and believers today straight on what it means to live mindfully.  Jesus said, “For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”  Well, what are the “things of God?”  Jesus was just beginning to teach his disciples that he “must suffer many things…and be killed and after three days rise again.”  Peter said, “No way.  That’s not a God thing.”

Well, Peter rejection and death on the cross is exactly what Jesus came to do.  After that comes the resurrection.  The human thing is to try to avoid pain, suffering.  Deny death.

However, if we are going to follow Jesus, it means having a willingness to bear the cross.  It might mean that we will be rejected, and suffer and even die in following Christ, but that is the way to life.  Face it, Jesus tells us, if you want to live, you need to lose your life, put that life without me behind you, drown it in baptism.

That is mindful living.  As St. Paul writes, “Have this mind among yourselves which you have in Christ.”  It might mean not only bearing your own cross but the cross of some else also.  It might mean emulating Simon of Cyrene, a man from North Africa, “And they Laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus.”  That is the way to life.