In today's first reading, Colossians 1: 24-2:3, St. Paul tells the Colossians that he is rejoicing in the sufferings that he is undergoing for their sake. Sounds like parents who are filled with joy that the sufferings that they are enduring will result in their children growing up in the faith, will empower their children to make good choices and, in turn, become good parents and good providers for their own children,. Nothing, then, is too much for a parent to endure!
That is God for us! Nothing, absolutely nothing, is or was too much for Jesus to endure for our sake. That was true for the Son of Man, God incarnate, who as a man lived in Capernaum for a time and is true for Jesus now. Christ lives in us--that is the mystery Paul is talking about in this passage to the Colossians. The fact that Christ lives in us means that whatever suffering we are going through Christ also is enduring for our sake and the sake of the Church yet to be borne into eternal life.
"[W]hat is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of ...the Church" is what Paul states he is filling up in his flesh. That suffering Jesus in filling up by His dwelling within us and suffering what we are suffering, thus transforming such into redemptive graces for ourselves and the whole Church.
Furthermore, St. Paul says "I am a minister in accordance with God's stewardship given to me to bring to completion for you the word of God." The word of God is sent to us to bring about the purpose for which God sent it, our salvation. Paul worked slavishly for the Colossians, and all to whom God sent him, so that they would come to Jesus, believe in Jesus and carry out Jesus' plan of salvation for them. So, too, does Christ come to us in the sacraments, in the Scriptures and in the good works we do--all meant to bring about our salvation and open the gates of heaven for us in Christ Jesus and through Christ Jesus and for Christ Jesus, who loves us unconditionally and acts continuously for us to know and accomplish His Father's will!
Monday, September 9, 2019
Saturday, September 7, 2019
Reconciled by God in Christ's Body
In today's first reading, Colossians 1: 21-23, St. Paul reminds us that we "once were alienated and hostile in mind because of evil deeds."
Notice that our being alienated from others or from our deepest self, where truth and peace reside, where the Trinity dwells, results from the evil we do or think, and not from God or others. When we are feeling hostile towards ourselves or others, it is because of the choices we make to engage in evil acts! Hostility in ourselves feeds hostility in others. If we react with hostility then we are likely to receive such from the other person. On the other hand, if we return good for evil and peace for hostility, the reaction is different, because we, then, are cooperating with God's grace of reconciliation.
The grace to reconcile with others or with our true self is always offered to us by God, as St. Paul reminds us: "God has now reconciled you in the fleshly Body of Christ through is death, to present you holy, without blemish, and irreproachable before him [and before others], provided that [we] persevere in the faith, firmly grounded, stable, and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel..." which we hear at every Mass or Liturgy. If we live the gospel, we will then be persevering in the faith and firmly grounded in our belief that God is calling us to be agents of reconciliation.
Lord, help us live our faith today, knowing that in every situation that we will face you will have prepared the way for us to be agents of reconciliation, ambassadors of peace, and instruments of Your love!
Notice that our being alienated from others or from our deepest self, where truth and peace reside, where the Trinity dwells, results from the evil we do or think, and not from God or others. When we are feeling hostile towards ourselves or others, it is because of the choices we make to engage in evil acts! Hostility in ourselves feeds hostility in others. If we react with hostility then we are likely to receive such from the other person. On the other hand, if we return good for evil and peace for hostility, the reaction is different, because we, then, are cooperating with God's grace of reconciliation.
The grace to reconcile with others or with our true self is always offered to us by God, as St. Paul reminds us: "God has now reconciled you in the fleshly Body of Christ through is death, to present you holy, without blemish, and irreproachable before him [and before others], provided that [we] persevere in the faith, firmly grounded, stable, and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel..." which we hear at every Mass or Liturgy. If we live the gospel, we will then be persevering in the faith and firmly grounded in our belief that God is calling us to be agents of reconciliation.
Lord, help us live our faith today, knowing that in every situation that we will face you will have prepared the way for us to be agents of reconciliation, ambassadors of peace, and instruments of Your love!
Thursday, September 5, 2019
Knowledge and Understanding of God's Will
In today's first reading, Colossians 1: 9-14, St. Paul tells the people that he has been praying for them from the day that he first heard about them. The same is true of Jesus' first meeting of us as His baptized son/daughter. Every day, Jesus intercedes for us asking, as St. Paul did for the Colossians, that you, insert your name), "may be filled with the knowledge of God's will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, so as to be fully pleasing, in every good work bearing fruit and growing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with every power, in accord with his glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy giving thanks to the Father,. who has made you fit to share in the inheritance of the holy ones in light."
The only way that we know God's will is through God's gift of "spiritual wisdom and understanding." With Jesus as our intercessor, nothing will deprive us of the wisdom and understanding of what God is asking of us at any given time in our lives! So why is it that we do not always do what God asks of us. Our failure is not that God is not doing His part! God is always there with the wisdom and the understanding we need to walk in a manner worthy of Him and in a way that we fully please Him in every good work bearing fruit. The problem may be that we are too busy trying to please others and meet their approval, not God's!
St. Paul prays, as does Jesus, that we be strengthened "with every power, in accord with [God's]
glorious might." However, we might be blind and deaf to the voice of the Holy Spirit because we are obsessively and compulsively seeking the power and glorious might the world promises us through this world's billionaires or popular pseudo gods. No way, then, would we be interested in sharing the "inheritance of the holy ones in light," an inheritance in which we begin to share even here on earth when our choices are in harmony with God's will for us here and now: knowledge of God, spiritual wisdom and understanding, God's glorious might working through us, and a joy and a peace which the world cannot give.
The only way that we know God's will is through God's gift of "spiritual wisdom and understanding." With Jesus as our intercessor, nothing will deprive us of the wisdom and understanding of what God is asking of us at any given time in our lives! So why is it that we do not always do what God asks of us. Our failure is not that God is not doing His part! God is always there with the wisdom and the understanding we need to walk in a manner worthy of Him and in a way that we fully please Him in every good work bearing fruit. The problem may be that we are too busy trying to please others and meet their approval, not God's!
St. Paul prays, as does Jesus, that we be strengthened "with every power, in accord with [God's]
glorious might." However, we might be blind and deaf to the voice of the Holy Spirit because we are obsessively and compulsively seeking the power and glorious might the world promises us through this world's billionaires or popular pseudo gods. No way, then, would we be interested in sharing the "inheritance of the holy ones in light," an inheritance in which we begin to share even here on earth when our choices are in harmony with God's will for us here and now: knowledge of God, spiritual wisdom and understanding, God's glorious might working through us, and a joy and a peace which the world cannot give.
Wednesday, September 4, 2019
Living Christian Lives
In today's Gospel, Luke 4: 38-44, Peter's mother-in-law is seriously ill with a severe fever. Peter and others in the household intercede for her and Jesus heals her! Immediately following the healing, she proceeds to wait upon Peter and his guests.
Notice that the healing takes place very quietly within the home and as the result of the family interceding for the sick family member. Take notice of three things: 1) That family matters and each member plays a significant part in the well-being of the other members, 2) That intercessory prayer is important and effective, and 3) That simplicity and humility are essential characteristics of disciples of Jesus. Following the healing, Peter's mother-in-law simply gets up and humbly waits upon the family and their visitors, immediately assuming the ordinary duties of the one who provides hospitality. She could have, on the other hand, expected to be waited upon and treated with "kid gloves," so to speak, given how sick she had been. Or she could have expected a lot to be made over her because she was the recipient of a sudden cure by Jesus! Either position would not have been the fruits of simplicity and humility but would have flowed from pride!
Following the meal, as the sun is setting, people of the village bring their sick to Jesus for healing. "He laid his hands on each of them and cured them. And demons also came out from many, shouting 'You are the Son of God.' But Jesus rebuked them and did not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ." Jesus them goes off to a quiet place, most likely to commune with the Father. He does not hang around expecting Peter and his family or the villagers to applaud Him for the healings he performed in His Father's name.
Both Jesus and Peter's mother-in-law are models of simplicity, humility and service. As disciples of Jesus, we, too, are called to live simple and humble lives of service and, like Peter and his family, be intercessors for others in need!
Notice that the healing takes place very quietly within the home and as the result of the family interceding for the sick family member. Take notice of three things: 1) That family matters and each member plays a significant part in the well-being of the other members, 2) That intercessory prayer is important and effective, and 3) That simplicity and humility are essential characteristics of disciples of Jesus. Following the healing, Peter's mother-in-law simply gets up and humbly waits upon the family and their visitors, immediately assuming the ordinary duties of the one who provides hospitality. She could have, on the other hand, expected to be waited upon and treated with "kid gloves," so to speak, given how sick she had been. Or she could have expected a lot to be made over her because she was the recipient of a sudden cure by Jesus! Either position would not have been the fruits of simplicity and humility but would have flowed from pride!
Following the meal, as the sun is setting, people of the village bring their sick to Jesus for healing. "He laid his hands on each of them and cured them. And demons also came out from many, shouting 'You are the Son of God.' But Jesus rebuked them and did not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ." Jesus them goes off to a quiet place, most likely to commune with the Father. He does not hang around expecting Peter and his family or the villagers to applaud Him for the healings he performed in His Father's name.
Both Jesus and Peter's mother-in-law are models of simplicity, humility and service. As disciples of Jesus, we, too, are called to live simple and humble lives of service and, like Peter and his family, be intercessors for others in need!
Tuesday, September 3, 2019
"Seeing the Bounty of the Lord in the Land of the Living" (Psalm 27)
In today's responsorial psalm, Psalm 27, we acknowledge our belief that "the Lord is [our] light and our salvation,...[our] life' s refuge." We ask the Lord for the the favor to "dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of [our lives and to]...gaze on the loveliness of the Lord and contemplate his temple." We then, at the close of the psalm, express our belief that we "shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living." In order to experience any of the graces expressed in this psalm, however, the psalmist tells us that we need to "wait for the Lord with courage....[B]e stouthearted, and wait for the Lord!"
"The Lord is our light." In order to know the Lord as our light, we need to experience darkness, as did the man in today's Gospel, Luke 4: 31-37. Think of the joy he experienced when Jesus, His Savior, delivered him from the power of an unclean spirit that had taken possession of him. To truly know joy, as this man did, we need to experience the darkness of sorrow. To deeply know the strength of our faith, we need to go through the darkness of doubt! To bask in the joy of being healthy we need to live through the dark times of an illness! The man in today's Gospel, I believe, would have gone through all of these experiences! Even Jesus as a human being was not exempt from experiencing darkness, the most awful of which was His crucifixion and death upon the cross! He passed through death, however, to the glory of the resurrection! We will, as well!
In Psalm 27, we pray to "gaze upon the loveliness of the Lord and contemplate his temple." How might that happen? I believe that the loveliness of the Lord resides in every human being and that all people and all of creation are God's temple. God, I believe, lives in each one of us and in creation itself. As temples of God and dwelling places of God's loveliness, we are called to make known God's loveliness and to build God's temple by co-operating with God's grace. We have examples of this in creation. Everything in the universe reveals God's brilliance, God's loveliness, God's beauty, God's love for us! As persons with free will, we may or may not cooperate with grace in revealing the loveliness, the beauty, the brilliance of God, the love of God within us and supporting and nurturing the God-life in others.
The choice to live in the Light or in darkness is ours to make each day, as is the choice to move through "death" to resurrection or to new life each day! If we choose life and reject death each day, we truly "shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living."
"The Lord is our light." In order to know the Lord as our light, we need to experience darkness, as did the man in today's Gospel, Luke 4: 31-37. Think of the joy he experienced when Jesus, His Savior, delivered him from the power of an unclean spirit that had taken possession of him. To truly know joy, as this man did, we need to experience the darkness of sorrow. To deeply know the strength of our faith, we need to go through the darkness of doubt! To bask in the joy of being healthy we need to live through the dark times of an illness! The man in today's Gospel, I believe, would have gone through all of these experiences! Even Jesus as a human being was not exempt from experiencing darkness, the most awful of which was His crucifixion and death upon the cross! He passed through death, however, to the glory of the resurrection! We will, as well!
In Psalm 27, we pray to "gaze upon the loveliness of the Lord and contemplate his temple." How might that happen? I believe that the loveliness of the Lord resides in every human being and that all people and all of creation are God's temple. God, I believe, lives in each one of us and in creation itself. As temples of God and dwelling places of God's loveliness, we are called to make known God's loveliness and to build God's temple by co-operating with God's grace. We have examples of this in creation. Everything in the universe reveals God's brilliance, God's loveliness, God's beauty, God's love for us! As persons with free will, we may or may not cooperate with grace in revealing the loveliness, the beauty, the brilliance of God, the love of God within us and supporting and nurturing the God-life in others.
The choice to live in the Light or in darkness is ours to make each day, as is the choice to move through "death" to resurrection or to new life each day! If we choose life and reject death each day, we truly "shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living."
Monday, September 2, 2019
Jesus' Mission Statement and His Anointing of Us
In today's Gospel, Luke 4: 16-30, Jesus is attending the synagogue service, as He always did on the Sabbath. He stood up to read and opened the Scriptures to the passage in Isaiah that spells out His Mission Statement:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord!
Let us hear Jesus' message to you and me:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon you, (insert your name), because I have anointed you at your baptism and every time you receive the Eucharist, the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick or any other sacrament. I also anoint you every day with love. Why? So that you become a Good News person and are able to make a difference in the lives you touch. I anoint you so that My love grows in you and you can be a blessing of love to those I send into your life each day or to those to whom I send you. I anoint you each day so that you can be a person who empowers others to know freedom from oppression, negative views of themselves and know that they are loved. I anoint you with the oil of the Spirit, an oil that never dries up but multiplies when you anoint others with love and they anoint you."
"I anoint you because I have chosen you to go forth and bear fruit that lasts and that fruit is love."
How great is the Lord, our God!
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord!
Let us hear Jesus' message to you and me:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon you, (insert your name), because I have anointed you at your baptism and every time you receive the Eucharist, the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick or any other sacrament. I also anoint you every day with love. Why? So that you become a Good News person and are able to make a difference in the lives you touch. I anoint you so that My love grows in you and you can be a blessing of love to those I send into your life each day or to those to whom I send you. I anoint you each day so that you can be a person who empowers others to know freedom from oppression, negative views of themselves and know that they are loved. I anoint you with the oil of the Spirit, an oil that never dries up but multiplies when you anoint others with love and they anoint you."
"I anoint you because I have chosen you to go forth and bear fruit that lasts and that fruit is love."
How great is the Lord, our God!
Sunday, September 1, 2019
Humility: Resisting the Temptations Pride Puts before Us
Hear the Lord say the following to you through the author of today's first reading, Sirach 3: 17-18, 20, 28-29:
(Insert your name), what I ask of you is to maintain a humble heart. Resist pride's desire to be noticed or your ego's need to be set upon a throne to be worshiped.
Seek Me, not accolades!
Rely on Me to comfort you and give you strength in hard times. I am there for you always and I am enough for you. Trust that truth! I am God; there is no other.
Be still. Be reverent and respectful of others and you will find Me.
Clothe yourself in humility and you will be surrounded by My peace within and without.
Seek my peace, a peace the world and those in it cannot give you.You find my peace in solitude. Avoid noise and unnecessary stress that comes from the ego's insistence on being No. 1 and being on its throne as king/queen!"
Thank you, Lord. I ask for those graces today!
(Insert your name), what I ask of you is to maintain a humble heart. Resist pride's desire to be noticed or your ego's need to be set upon a throne to be worshiped.
Seek Me, not accolades!
Rely on Me to comfort you and give you strength in hard times. I am there for you always and I am enough for you. Trust that truth! I am God; there is no other.
Be still. Be reverent and respectful of others and you will find Me.
Clothe yourself in humility and you will be surrounded by My peace within and without.
Seek my peace, a peace the world and those in it cannot give you.You find my peace in solitude. Avoid noise and unnecessary stress that comes from the ego's insistence on being No. 1 and being on its throne as king/queen!"
Thank you, Lord. I ask for those graces today!
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