Second Monday of Lent

Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins. Remember not against us the iniquities of the past; may your compassion quickly come to us, for we are brought very low.

We should count ourselves very blessed that God is loving and merciful. He offers us forgiveness for all our imperfections, weaknesses, and sins. He is willing to forgive and forget our iniquities and cleanse us of our sins. All we have to do is come to Him with humble and contrite hearts, confess our sins, do penance, and amend our lives. Then, He will show us His boundless compassion and lift us up from our lowliness, raising our hearts, souls, minds, and bodies back into His good graces.

In what ways have we sinned against God? How can we amend our lives so we do not sin in these ways again? Do we make time to confess our sins and do penance?

O Lord, remember not our iniquities.

Amen.

Eighth Monday of Ordinary Time

Let the just exult and rejoice in the Lord. Then I acknowledged my sin to you, my guilt I covered not. I said, "I confess my faults to the LORD," and you took away the guilt of my sin.

A good confession can make a world of difference in our lives. It can clear the slate and give us new focus. It offers us an opportunity for true conversion of body, mind, and spirit if we allow the graces of the confessional to flow into us and help us to do penance and amend our lives. God gave us the sacrament of reconciliation because He knows our fallen nature and our desire to strive against it. Confession is a way for us to stand up against our selfish desires and acknowledge and proclaim we want something better.

Are we making use of the sacrament of reconciliation? What are the sins and guilts hold us back? How can we build up the courage to make a thorough examination of conscience and good confession?

O Lord, we acknowledge our sins and seek to amend our ways.

Amen.

Twenty-Second Friday in Ordinary Time

The one who judges me is the Lord. Therefore, do not make any judgment before the appointed time, until the Lord comes, for he will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will manifest the motives of our hearts, and then everyone will receive praise from God.

We are all called to be servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God and it is by these two vocations that we will be judged. God will judge whether we have been good and faithful servants in these regards. He will shine the light of truth on all our thoughts, words, and works and we will see what is hidden within us. We shall know every motive, good or bad, and see every virtue and vice. We will truly know ourselves and whether we have lived Christ-like lives or if we have lived foolishly and falsely. We shall know if we have been charitable or selfish, hopefully or despairing, faithful or indifferent Hopefully, God will find something praise-worthy within all of us. But if we doubt He will find good works in our hearts, then we should amend our lives so we might do something worthy of being called Christians.

Are we being good and faithful servants of Christ? Have we been loyal and trust-worthy stewards of the mysteries of God? How can we align our motives and actions more perfectly with God's Will?

O Lord, you are my Judge, be merciful.

Amen.

Eleventh Saturday in Ordinary Time

Although prophets were sent to them to convert them to the LORD, the people would not listen to their warnings. Then the Spirit of God possessed Zechariah, son of Jehoiada the priest.
He took his stand above the people and said to them: "God says, 'Why are you transgressing the LORD's commands, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have abandoned the LORD, he has abandoned you.'

There are many ways in which we might transgress against God. We might let worldly distractions keep us from doing good. We might allow temptations to lead us into evil. We might become indifferent to the needs of others or lukewarm in our faith. Thankfully, God gives us every opportunity to make amends for our failings and sins. He sends us warnings through our own consciences, through the counsel of others, and in many other ways. He does not want us to abandon Him, but He will not force us to know, love, and serve Him and His children. It is up to us to choose to humble ourselves, ask for forgiveness, and do our penance.

In what ways do we transgress against God? How can we overcome these weaknesses and lean upon the strength of God? How can we amend our lives to become better Christians?

O Lord, convert my heart so that I might prosper.

Amen.

Ninth Friday of Ordinary Time

"Blessed be God, and praised be his great name, and blessed be all his holy angels. May his holy name be praised throughout all the ages, Because it was he who scourged me, and it is he who has had mercy on me. Behold, I now see my son Tobiah!" Then Tobit went back in, rejoicing and praising God with full voice for everything that had happened. Tobiah told his father that the Lord God had granted him a successful journey; that he had brought back the money; and that he had married Raguel's daughter Sarah, who would arrive shortly, for she was approaching the gate of Nineveh.

There is always the chance of redemption for us if we are willing to pray for and seek it out. No matter how much we’ve sinned in the past, are sinning now, and will sin in the future… The Lord, Our God is willing to be merciful to us. We have only to seek Him our sincerely and come to choose him over ourselves and our selfish vices. If we do this, then we, too will be saved by God’s Mercy and have a successful journey in this world… one that leads us to eternal happiness with God in Heaven.

What are the sins we are being scourged for? Are we sincerely seeking God’s Mercy and trying our best to amend our lives? Do we realize that the only way to have a safe journey on this earth is to live prayerful and faithful lives?

O Lord, praise be to your name and your mercy.

Amen.

Sixteenth Monday of Ordinary Time

At the judgment the queen of the south will arise with this generation and condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and there is something greater than Solomon here.

Jesus lets his listeners know that if they want to be truly repentant and wise, then they need to follow him and not look for signs. Jesus has given us all we need to live good and faithful lives in his gospel. He has shown us how to live lives of repentance and wisdom. Like the Ninevehites we have been given God’s words and been told about the coming judgment. We have no excuse not to follow Jesus in thought, word, and work. We have no excuse to claim ignorance because Jesus has made his commandments simple and clear: we are called to love God with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths and to love our neighbors as Jesus loves them. In the end our choice is simple: live in love or die in sin.

Are we living in love? Have we repented from our sins and amended our lives so that we sin no more? Have we not only sought the wisdom of Jesus, but internalized his gospel in our daily lives?

O Lord, we come to you in a spirit of repentance, seeking your wisdom.

Amen.