Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are children not of the slave woman but of the freeborn woman. For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

Sin enslaves us to possessions, to people, to selfishness, and to evil. It yokes us to our bad habits and our evil inclinations. It weighs us down with wickedness. It eats away at our spirit, rotting it from the core. In the end, it leads us to destruction and wailing and gnashing of our teeth. Thankfully, God has given us His Beloved Son to free us from the bonds of sin. The Good News of Jesus Christ calls us to rebel against our bad habits and evil inclinations. It lifts the burden of wickedness from our shoulders. His Truth nourishes our souls and helps them grow in faith, hope, and love. The Word Made Flesh leads us upon the Way to Heaven by helping us live our lives for God and His children. So, the next time we feel burdened by our responsibilities to God, His Church, and His children, we should remember than they are much lighter than those chains that enslave us when we choose selfishness and sin over holiness and right.

Have we let our sins enslave us? How can we rid ourselves of the vices, bad habits, and imperfections that keep us from being free from evil? How can we thank God for the saving graces He has given to us through His Beloved Son?

O Lord, free us from sin and lead us to freedom in you.

Amen.

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

I declare and testify in the Lord that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds; that is not how you learned Christ, assuming that you have heard of him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus, that you should put away the old self of your former way of life, corrupted through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created in God's way in righteousness and holiness of truth.

Every now and then, we need to reevaluate our lives and examine our conscience. We need to look at what we’ve done and failed to do. We need to ask ourselves what bad habits need to be replaced with good ones. We need to know what areas of our lives we need to improve. We need to root out those things that lead us to temptation and sin. We need to put away our old selves and their deceitful desires and instead put on Christ. We need to renew our hearts, minds, spirits, and bodies. We need to recreate ourselves in the holy image of God and the Way, Truth, and Life of Jesus.

What deceitful desires and sins do we need to get rid of? What holy yearnings and virtues do we need to put in their place? How can we be transformed more perfectly into Jesus Christ?

O Lord, help us to cast aside our old selves and put on you.

Amen.