Twelfth Thursday of Ordinary Time

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his mercy endures forever. Who can tell the mighty deeds of the LORD, or proclaim all his praises?

There are many ways we can give thanks to God. We can give Him thanks through our prayers. We can give Him thanks through our acts of almsgiving. We can give Him thanks through our moments of mercy. We can give Him thanks through our mortifications and sacrifices. We can give Him thanks through our daily chores. We can give Him thanks with a glance toward Heaven. We can give Him thanks through our work for and with others. We can give Him thanks by proclaiming the Good News through our every word and work.

How do we give God thanks? How can we tell of God’s mighty deeds and proclaim and praise Him to others? How can we be good as God is good to us?

O Lord, we give thanks for you are good.

Amen.

Fourth Saturday of Lent

O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge. O LORD, my God, in you I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and rescue me, Lest I become like the lion’s prey, to be torn to pieces, with no one to rescue me.

God is our refuge, protecting from evil and sheltering us from the storms of life. Through His compassion, He shows us how to be a refuge for others. He shows us how to love all His children, even those who are most difficult to love. He shows us how to provide for the needy. He shows us how to comfort the suffering. He shows us how to be good as He is Good. He shows us how to rescue those in danger. He shows us how to be holy in all things. He does all of this because He wants us all to grow into living tabernacles, bearing Him into the world through our thoughts, words, and words... through our almsgiving, prayers, and mortifications.

Do we turn to God when we are in need of shelter? Are we a refuge for others? How can we follow God’s example and become living tabernacles of God’s Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity?

O Lord, help us to become living refuges for all those in need.

Amen.

Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

"Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me. Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because the little one is a disciple—amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward."

We should be more welcoming to God and others. We should welcome God into our minds, hearts, and spirits. We should welcome others into our homes and lives. We would all be better off if the world with a more hospitable place where everyone loved each other to the best of their abilities. We can love others best by knowing, loving, and serving God and His children with humble and caring attitudes. Preaching, praying, acting righteously, and being compassionate and merciful are all ways we can receive God and others into our lives and bear good fruit in our relationships with them.

Are we receptive to having God in our lives? Are we welcoming of others? How can we show our hospitality to everyone so they can in turn see how welcoming God is to all peoples?

O Lord, let us receive you into our hearts so we can better give you to others through our preaching, praying, and acts of charity and mercy.

Amen.

Thirty-First Thursday of Ordinary Time

What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’

We should all strive to find sinners and lead them back to God. We should never give up on them, even if they make it painful and difficult to bring them back. Nor should we be discouraged if they refuse to return with us and continue to run away from their Lord and Savior. We are to be satisfied with seeking out, finding, and offering help to those in most need of God's Love and Mercy. We cannot save everyone, but we can search for them and let them know there is a way back. And sometimes we shall have to carry a person back upon our shoulders, weighed down with their burdens, but if we are faithful and trust in God, He shall give us the strength to carry our living crosses just as Jesus did so long ago. Then, when we reach the finish line, we shall be able to see all those whom we helped along the way and they shall bear us on their shoulders and proclaim that we were good and faithful servants to them and to God.

Are we willing to set aside our own plans, needs, and wants to help others to return to God? How can we help others to find God and a place in paradise? Are we willing to carry others back to God when they are too lost or weak to do it on their own?

O Lord, we rejoice in every lost sheep you send our way.

Amen.

Thirty-First Monday of Ordinary Time

When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.

We should make it a point to do everything we can for those who are in need. For the poor, we should enrich their lives with acts of mercy and love. For the crippled and lame, we should do what we can to help them succeed. We should give a hand to those who need it and go the extra mile for those who need someone to walk with them on their journeys. Our family and friends are important, but we should also remember that Jesus made others the focus of his life's mission and we are called to do the same.

In what ways are we enriching the lives of the poor and helping those in need? What can we do to invite others into our lives and help them? How can we make others the focus of our lives?

O Lord, may we always imitate you in how we treat others.

Amen.

Thirtieth Tuesday of Ordinary Time

“To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch of dough was leavened.”

Little acts of love and mercy can have great effects on our lives and the lives of those around us. We might be tempted to believe that we cannot make a difference in this world. We might be tempted to disbelieve that what little we can do has the potential to raise people up to heavenly heights. However, God gives us gifts, talents, and graces for the very purpose of expanding His Kingdom on earth. We cannot do that if we are afraid, doubtful, or hesitant in regards to our faith. This is why Jesus constantly reminds his disciples to "Be not afraid." The Holy Spirit speaks these same words to us through our consciences and it is up to us to set aside our insecurities and trust in God's Plan. If we do this, then we can leaven the world, raise it up, and nourish the souls of those around us.

What little things can we do to know, love, and serve God and His children? What gifts, talents, and graces has God given us in order to do His Will? How have we used them in the past and how can we use them better in the days ahead?

O Lord, make us into leaven for the world and raise it up to heavenly heights.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

"Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry, how he went into the house of God and ate the bread of offering, which neither he nor his companions but only the priests could lawfully eat? Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests serving in the temple violate the Sabbath and are innocent? I say to you, something greater than the temple is here. If you knew what this meant, I desire mercy, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned these innocent men. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath."

We are all called to do God’s Will, no matter the time or place. Sometimes we can convince ourselves that we shouldn’t do the right thing because we’re too busy practicing our religious routines. However, we should not let ourselves be blinded to the needs of others by our personal spirituality. Sometimes we may need to stop in the middle of a prayer to give someone else a hand. We might even need to miss Mass in order to take care of someone in need. God knows that if we could have finished the prayer or gone to Mass we would have done so. He sees the inner actions of our hearts and He will not punish us for being Christ-like and knowing, loving, and serving our neighbors in their times of need. We should never allow an opportunity to show mercy to pass by because of a sense of religious obligation.

Have we let chances to do God’s Will pass us by out of a false sense of religiousness? What can we do to open our hearts to those moments when we can offer God acts of love and mercy outside our normal religious routines? How can we prepare ourselves for those moments when we might be called to be not just religious, but merciful servants as well?

O Lord, make us into fonts of your mercy.

Amen.

The First Monday of Lent

“He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’

Eventually, we will either be sheep or goats. We will either fall on the right or left. There will be no middle ground for us to waffle on. In the end, we will either be wholly God's and bound to Heaven or wholly ourselves and doomed to destruction. And it all depends not only on how faithful we are to God, but also how loving and forgiving we are to others. Our acts of charity and mercy (or lack thereof) will define what we are and where we belong. Hopefully, they define us as loving Christians and faithful servants to God and His children.

Do we feed the hungry and give drink to the thirsty? Do we welcome strangers and clothe the naked? Do we care for the sick and visit those who are in prison?

O Lord, grant us the grace to be part of your faithful flock so that one day we might enjoy eternity with you in the pastures of paradise.

Amen.

The Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written: 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.  Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus isn’t just talking about himself when he proclaims today’s scripture. He is also describing his followers. As Christians, we are all summoned to live Christ-like lives. However, in order to fulfill this clarion call, we must take up the words of the gospel, proclaim them for God’s greater glory, and then live compassionately towards others. We cannot be fruitful followers of Christ, if we do not bring glad tidings to the poor through prayer, almsgiving, and service. If we do not liberate the blinded captives of sin through our good council and loving example, then how can we consider ourselves good and faithful servants? Our thoughts, words, and works should help free the physically and spiritual oppressed. The way we live our lives should constantly proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord. So let us fulfill this scripture passage with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths so that when Jesus comes at the end of time, he will be able to say, “You have fulfilled my gospel.”

Have we proclaimed glad tidings to the poor? Have we helped free others from physical and spiritual oppression through our speech and our deeds? Do our lives proclaim the good news and lead others to a closer relationship with God and all His children?

O Lord, help us to fulfill your will today and every day of our lives.

Amen.

Thirty-Forth Monday of Ordinary Time

When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, “I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”

We all have different talents and livelihoods, but we are all called to offer what we have to God for His glory and the good of others. We can be tempted to hold something back in selfishness like the wealthy people in this reading, but we must not let ourselves be afraid to give God our all. Those who give everything to God, like the widow, will build up a treasury of graces for themselves in Heaven. They will be repaid by God with a thousand-fold interest for even the smallest act of love or mercy.

What talents has God given us to use on His behalf? How are we putting our livelihoods to work for the Lord? What small acts of kindness can we perform throughout our lives to build up a treasury of graces in Heaven?

O Lord, we give you our whole livelihoods.

Amen.