Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Indeed the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. No creature is concealed from him, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.

At the end of our lives, we will all be asked to render an account to God. There is nothing we can keep hidden from Him. Nothing He won’t see. We will see ourselves as God sees us... the good, the bad, and everything between. He will show us what we did right and what we did wrong. He will cut through all our illusions and reveal our true selves, virtues and vices, faith and doubt, hope and despair, love and hate. Thankfully, the sacrament of reconciliation can wash away our iniquities and cleanse us of our sins and if we make regular use of this source of grace we shall have nothing to fear from the Lord. We might not be perfect as our Father is perfect, but He will know we were humble and contrite and tried our best to be good and faithful servants and His Divine Mercy will be poured out upon us.

Are we leading our lives in such a way as to build up virtues and graces or are we tearing down our spirits with vices and selfishness? Do we make regular use of the healing sacrament of reconciliation? How can we cultivate spirits that are humble and contrite?

O Lord, give us the graces we need to render a good account for ourselves before you.

Amen.