Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and evangelist

I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace: one Body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

It requires a great deal of faith, hope, and love to remain united to God and to His children. There are so many things in the world that seek to divide us... gender, race, ideology, income, health, and lifestyles... just to name a few. Sometimes we are drawn away from each other by these various differences. We come to see our point of view as the best and are tempted to act holier than thou. However, this sort of attitude comes from the vice of pride and can lead us to destruction just as easily as the other extreme, which is to think we are the worst of people with no hope for a better life. This is why it is so important to cultivate a spirit of humility. So, we trust in God’s Plan no matter how good or bad our current lives might seem. We also must strive to be gentle and patient with one another through love so no matter how we might feel we will always be united together through the Holy Spirit. The goal of our lives is not worldly success, but rather unity in one Lord, one faith, and one baptism so one day we will be blessed to spend the rest of eternity with our one Heavenly Father.

Are we united with God as we ought to be? How can we become better united with others, especially those whom are most difficult for us to love? What can we do to bring people together in our faith?

O Lord, we wish to be united in you now and forevermore.

Amen.