Thirty-Fourth Monday in Ordinary Time

Glory and praise forever! “Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory, praiseworthy and glorious above all forever.”

The temple of God’s Glory resides within each of our hearts. How we tend our bodies, minds, and spirits reflects how we treat God. If we ignore our physical, mental, and spiritual growth, then we weaken our living temples. The only way for the walls of our faith to stand up to earthly trials is if we build them on the solid ground of hope and construct them with the best resources of love, mercy, and goodness. Our temples are only as strong as our reliance on God, who supports us in our times of need and weakness. He makes us strong and for that we should be very thankful.

Are we tending to the good and holy needs of our bodies, minds, and spirits? How can we found ourselves more firmly upon the strength of our Heavenly Father? What can we do to help shore up the faiths of others and help them grow as Christians?

O Lord, blessed are you and the temple you have built within our hearts.

Amen.

Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome

You are God’s building. According to the grace of God given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But each one must be careful how he builds upon it, for no one can lay a foundation other than the one that is there, namely, Jesus Christ.

We are God’s building. We are His Church and Temple. We are all parts of one dwelling. We all serve a purpose. We are all founded in one faith, one baptism, for one God. We are united in the Body of Christ which is manifested through us. We are builders, too, of faith, hope, and love. We add onto the Church through our thoughts, words, and works and as such we must take our responsibilities seriously. We must be careful to build upon the foundation of Christ and not upon anything else. We must add onto the Church through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We must not damage or distort what God has constructed for us. We must be vigilant in the defense of the Scriptures and the Traditions of the Church, while still being open to growing His Temple in new and sanctifying directions.

Do we take care of God’s Temple within our souls? In what ways do we build up the Church? Are our spiritual foundations rooted in Jesus Christ?

O Lord, we are your building, do with us what you will.

Amen.

Thirtieth Tuesday in Ordinary Time

The Lord has done marvels for us. Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like the torrents in the southern desert. Those that sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.

God constantly offers us restoration. He provides for us a path to renewal and rejuvenation as His children. He gives us a way to shore up the foundations of our faith and rebuild areas of our spiritual lives that have fallen into disrepair. He wants our spiritual fortunes restored. He wants the roots of our lives watered and the branches of our lives to be fruitful. He wants us to sow no matter the difficulties so we can reap rejoicing. He wants us to prosper and the only way we can do that is to make Him the Source, Center, and Summit of our daily lives.

What marvels has God done for us? Do we thank Him for these graces and blessings? How can we learn to sow in tears so we can reap rejoicing?

O Lord, restore us.

Amen.

Twenty-Eighth Wednesday in Ordinary Time

Lord, you give back to everyone according to his works. Only in God is my soul at rest; from him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be disturbed at all.

We will be judged by our works in this world. We will be weighed by our words, too. How we treat others will reflect on us and reveal to God how He should treat us. If our souls are in God and of Him, then we will do good and avoid evil and our souls will be at rest. However, if we are in and of the world, seeking earthly pleasures and acting out of vice, then our hearts will be greatly distressed when the time of Final Judgment comes. It is only in God that we will find salvation and eternal life. It is only by founding our lives upon Him that we can have any hope of withstanding the wickedness and snares of the Devil. God is our stronghold against the Evil One and when we think, speak, and act like Him, we are protected from spiritual attacks and our hearts remain calm because we know God is always there for us.

Do our souls rest in God or the world? How can we found our lives more perfectly upon the Rock of our Salvation? Do we give ourselves to others as we would want them to give themselves to us?

O Lord, in you our souls find rest.

Amen.

Sixth Sunday of Easter

I saw no temple in the city for its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb. The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gave it light, and its lamp was the Lamb.

Each of our souls is a city. We build them up over the course of our lives. Some of us have straight and narrow roads. Others wide and winding streets. Some place God in the center of their souls. Others put money, fame, passions, and others things in the center of their lives. Still others never settle on a center and their cities are chaotic with no rhyme or reason to them. Hopefully, we are the ones who found ourselves on God... and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, our Holy Lamb. If we do this, then our lives will shine for all to see and give glory to God for everything He has done for us.

Where is God in our lives? Is He in the center of our souls or on the outskirts begging to come in? What can we do to build up a holy dwelling place for God within our hearts?

O Lord, enter into the cities of our souls.

Amen.

Friday in the Octave of Easter

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his mercy endures forever. Let the house of Israel say, “His mercy endures forever.” Let those who fear the LORD say, “His mercy endures forever.”

It is probably difficult for us as Christians to understand how the people of Jesus’ time could reject, scourge, and crucify such a loving and good person. However, when we think about our own lives it becomes much clearer just how people can turn their backs on Jesus. We reject him every time we choose selfishness over selflessness. We reject him every time we take the easy road of sin instead of the hard path of holiness. We reject him when we judge others rather than love and forgive them. We reject him when we feel superior to others instead of being humble and merciful. Those who rejected and crucified Jesus weren’t very different from us and some of them even became Christians after he rose from the dead. Thankfully, just because we turn our backs on Jesus from time to time doesn’t doom us to destruction. It simply means that like Paul we have to cast aside our old sinful ways and embrace God’s Divine Mercy, which endures forever.

In what ways have we rejected God in our lives? What part of ourselves is built upon the unstable sands of the world and which are built on God? How is God’s Mercy at work in our lives?

O Lord, we fear disappointing you, but if we do, then please be merciful to us.

Amen.

Twentieth Saturday in Ordinary Time

I fell prone as the glory of the LORD entered the temple by way of the gate which faces the east, but spirit lifted me up and brought me to the inner court. And I saw that the temple was filled with the glory of the LORD. Then I heard someone speaking to me from the temple, while the man stood beside me. The voice said to me: Son of man, this is where my throne shall be, this is where I will set the soles of my feet; here I will dwell among the children of Israel forever.

If we want to spend eternity with God, then we have to do everything within our power to transform our hearts into temples for the Lord. We need to place the foundations of our lives upon his commandments, build the walls of our faith around the teachings of Jesus, and shelter ourselves beneath the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. We have to cleanse and keep clean our consciences and keep watch against those things that would defile the sacred space we’ve created for God. We cannot let temptation or indifference ruin our spiritual temples. We must give glory to God for all He has done for us and thank Him for providing all we need to build our hearts into living temples to Him. We must welcome God’s Presence in our lives through constant prayer, frequent communion, and acts of charity and mercy toward others.

How can we make our hearts into temples to the Lord? What can we do to give glory to God with our every thought, word, and work? In what ways have we made our hearts into shelters for those who are in need or suffering?

O Lord, dwell without our hearts.

Amen.

Sixteenth Saturday in Ordinary Time

Only if you thoroughly reform your ways and your deeds; if each of you deals justly with his neighbor; if you no longer oppress the resident alien, the orphan, and the widow; if you no longer shed innocent blood in this place, or follow strange gods to your own harm, will I remain with you in this place, in the land I gave your fathers long ago and forever.

We all need to reform our lives in some way. We all have weaknesses we need to strengthen, failings we need to fix, and bad habits we need to break. We have temptations we need to resist, false idols we need to destroy, and sins we need to atone for. We also have opportunities for good we need to take advantage of when they present themselves. Only when we do all these things can we hope to make our hearts a worthy place for the Lord.

In what ways do we need to reform our lives? What can we do to strengthen ourselves in faith, hope, and love? How can we place God more firmly into the center of our lives?

O Lord, help us to reform our ways and our deeds.

Amen.

Fifteenth Tuesday in Ordinary Time

Unless your faith is firm you shall not be firm!

When we are face with trials, the metals of our souls are tested. Are our hearts strong like steel or rusted out by sin? Our faith needs to be firm if we want to be able to stand against the Devil and all his minions. Our hope has to be anchored in the harbor of our trust in the Lord if we want to withstand the storms of temptation that attack us. Our love must be hard as a diamond, unbreakable, even under the heat of our persecutors and pressures of the world. If there is any weakness in our spiritual lives, we must do everything we can to buttress ourselves against our failings and imperfections. We do this best through prayer, mortification, and the frequent reception of the sacraments of reconciliation and Eucharist. Our enemies cannot harm our spirits if we place our whole trust in God. So let us be firm in our faith by placing the foundations of our lives on the solid rock that is our Lord and God.

Are our faith lives built upon the solid foundation of trust in God's Love, Mercy, and Grace? What can we do to rid ourselves of our weaknesses in body, mind, and spirit so we might become bastions of faith for the Lord? How can we learn to be more trusting of God's Divine Plan over our own?

O Lord, give us the strength to stand firm in our faith.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint Boniface, Bishop and Martyr

Therefore, beloved, since you await these things, be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him, at peace. And consider the patience of our Lord as salvation. Therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, be on your guard not to be led into the error of the unprincipled and to fall from your own stability. But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

As Christians, we all are awaiting and praying for the Second Coming of Christ and the Day of Judgment. This is difficult to do if we allow ourselves to be lead into sin or if we cling to our worldly goods more firmly than our heavenly ones. There is nothing in this world that should keep us from God. No man, no woman, no ideology, no earthly goods, nothing. This is why we are forewarned by Peter to be on our guard. The Evil One will test and tempt us throughout our lives trying to distract us, to lure us into sin, or to infect us with indifference to our fellow man. However, if we found our faith on the solid rock of Jesus, we shall remain stable through the storms, we shall grow in grace, increase in knowledge, and go through our lives without spot or blemish. We shall be at peace with God and God will mark us with the sign of salvation so that when the end comes... we shall be with Him forever and ever.

What are we doing to prepare for and bring about the Second Coming? What can we do to resist all the temptations of the world? Are our lives founded upon the firm rock of Jesus, our Lord and Savior?

O Lord, lend us your strength so that we might grown in grace and knowledge.

Amen.

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.

God loves us. This is a truth that should be at the foundation of our lives. No matter the difficulties or obstacles we face as long as we remember God so loved us He died for us through Jesus Christ... then we have nothing to fear. No trial or tribulation can compare to the sufferings of our Lord and Savior. If he can die for us, who have sinned against him, then we can die to ourselves and do God’s Will above our own. And isn’t true love the desire to give of ourselves for the good of others? And so, if we know, love, and serve God and His children as they deserve, then we shall find peace in this world and everlasting life in the next.

What can we do to remind ourselves that God loves us? How can we share His Love with others? How can we give thanks for His Love all the days of our lives?

O Lord, open our hearts so they might be filled with your love.

Amen.

Friday within the Octave of Easter

Leaders of the people and elders: If we are being examined today about a good deed done to a cripple, namely, by what means he was saved, then all of you and all the people of Israel should know that it was in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead; in his name this man stands before you healed. He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.

Our every thought, word, and work should be done in the name of Jesus. No matter what we are doing, the spirit of Christ should be within us and guiding our decisions. We might be at home, at school, at work, at play, or anywhere in-between, but no matter where we are our faith, hope, and love in Jesus ought to guide us. Our good deeds ought to have the good of others and the glory of God as their aim. They should be done in the name of Jesus Christ. We shouldn't shy away from proclaiming the Good News in our actions both great and small. Jesus ought to be the cornerstone of our lives, the foundation of our faith, the saving shelter of our souls. There is no other name by which we are saved and so his name above all names ought to be ever on our lips.

Do we honor Jesus by thinking, speaking, and acting in his name? How can we bring Jesus into every facet of our lives? What do we need to do to make Jesus the cornerstone of our lives and keep him there forever?

O Lord, it is in your name that we find salvation.

Amen.

Fourth Monday of Lent

Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind. Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create; For I create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people to be a delight; I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people.

God is preparing a new world for us after our lives in this one. This is why it is so important to remember that our time on earth is only a prologue to our eternity. It lays the groundwork for what comes in the next life. We either build up a strong foundation that allows us to build a bridge to Heaven or we fail to do so and find ourselves lost to Hell. These are the two destinations that await us after our lives on earth end. There is no middle, lukewarm path. We are either destroyed because of our selfishness and sin or we are renewed in the spirit of love and truth and unite with God forever. The choice is ours.

How are we preparing for the afterlife? Are we building a bridge to Heaven? What can we do to make better choices so we can be united with God for all eternity?

O Lord, let us be filled with joy and happiness with you forever and ever.

Amen.

Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time

Brothers and sisters: I should like you to be free of anxieties. An unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord. But a married man is anxious about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and he is divided.

Each of us has their own set of anxieties in life. Some of us have anxieties in regards to our families and friends, others in regard to our jobs and finances, and all of us in the conflict between the heavenly and worldly things in our lives. Some of us are unmarried and have worries about our vocations. Others are married and have worries about spouses, children, and grandchildren. No lifestyle is free of difficulties, fears, and doubts, but if we trust in God, live our lives in accordance with His Will, then we shall have nothing to be afraid of. As long as we know, love, and serve God and His children with all our hearts, minds, souls, and strengths, then we shall overcome all obstacles and be pleasing to the Lord.

What are the anxieties we are facing in our lives? How can we place these worries at the feet of Christ and allow him to help us carry them? What can we do to ensure our lives are founded on heavenly and not worldly things?

O Lord, make us pleasing to you, always and in every way.

Amen.

Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Trust in the LORD forever! For the LORD is an eternal Rock.

God is our Rock and if our lives are founded on Him, we shall not lose them. No storm of suffering will topple us. No quake of fear will bring us down. No flood of woes shall wash us away. With God as our cornerstone, we can withstand any trial and stand firm against all temptations. We shall survive all difficulties if we trust in God and let Him lead us to a saintly life. It may not be easy to keep the faith in the midst of sufferings, but reaching the Gates of Heaven is worth every test we must undertake.

Are our lives founded on Our Lord and God? Do we trust Him to support us through every trial? How can we make God the foundation of our every thought, word, and work?

O Lord, we trust in you, Our Rock and Savior.

Amen.

Thirty-Fourth Tuesday of Ordinary Time

In the lifetime of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed or delivered up to another people; rather, it shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and put an end to them, and it shall stand forever. That is the meaning of the stone you saw hewn from the mountain without a hand being put to it, which broke in pieces the tile, iron, bronze, silver, and gold.

Everything man-made has a beginning and an end. Only God is eternal. Wealth, power, possessions and other worldly things will eventually fail us, crumbling to dust. Our bodies will fail, our minds weaken, and death will overtake us. However, if we found ourselves upon the rock of Christ and live in accordance with God’s commandments, Jesus’ teachings, and the Holy Spirit’s inspirations, then we shall have a solid foundation which will resist all trials and sufferings. If we choose to model ourselves on Christ, then we might die, but we shall be given eternal life in the kingdom of heaven.

Are our lives founded on worldly or heavenly things? Have we modeled our lives on the Life of Christ? How can we build our thoughts, words, and works upon the solid rock of faith in God?

O Lord, make our hearts into mountains dedicated to you.

Amen.

Sixth Friday of Ordinary Time

“If now, while they are one people, all speaking the same language, they have started to do this, nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do. Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so that one will not understand what another says.” Thus the LORD scattered them from there all over the earth, and they stopped building the city.

The problem with the Tower of Babel wasn’t that people were building it, but rather the reason why they were building it. They were constructing the tower so they could make a name for themselves and not to give glory to God. This glorification of self is founded in the deadliest of sins, pride. They, like Adam and Eve, wanted to make themselves like gods. Because of this, God scattered them and stopped them from building the tower. There are times when we choose to build our lives upon selfish foundations and sooner or later these reasons fail us and we are scattered. There is only one firm foundation to build our lives upon and it is God as our Heavenly Father, our Brotherly Master, and our Holy Spirit. It is in Him that we shall find a name for ourselves which will last forever... Christian!

What have we founded our lives upon? How can we avoid the temptation to glorify ourselves? What can we do to give glory to God?

O Lord, help us to found ourselves on you and nothing else.

Amen.