In the first reading, James states that often, conflicts arise as a result of "desires". "Desire" leads to other vices, such as "passion" and "pleasure". People desire things for the sake of "passion" and "pleasure" and not for the sake of sharing them with others. According to James, the way to overcome "desire" and "pleasure" is to wage war against sin where the battle is between God and the devil. And the real cure is for the Christian to "draw near to God", that is, to allow God to be Lord of his or her life. This calls for a total conversion of heart, mind and life.

The concerns of James are also shared by the Gospel writer, Mark. Mark highlights a major issue that was plaguing the Christian community of his day, namely, ambition among the members. How ambitious Jesus' disciples are! They argue about who is the most important among them, instead of trying to understand the meaning of their Master's passion prediction. The response of Jesus is direct and simple: to be "important" among Jesus' followers means to be a humble servant, not a proud person "first". Jesus presents himself and the child as models of openness to others.

As Christians, are we constantly striving for things for the sake of pleasure or ambition, or desiring to be seen as more important than others, instead of deepening our relationship with God? May the readings today remind us of our need to experience conversion in our lives daily.