Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work. I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.

We can learn a lot about how to live our lives from Scripture. We are shown time and again what it means to be a God-bearing person. We are given commandments to follow, teachings to live by, and guidance in leading holy lives. We are given corrections for our failures and trained in righteousness. If we live according to the Good News, we will be equipped for every good work. This is why it is so important to proclaim the Word of God through our every thought, word, and work. It not only builds up and reinforces our own holiness, but helps others to increase in faith, hope, and love. The life of Christian virtue is one we must live whether it is convenient or inconvenient so we can convince, reprimand, and encourage others in their own journeys toward God.

Do we take time each day to meditate on Scripture? How can we take what we learn from the Good News and put it into practice? What can we do to support others in their own faith journeys?

O Lord, help us to be persistent in living out the teachings of the Holy Scriptures you’ve provided us.

Amen.

Second Tuesday of Ordinary Time

The LORD said to Samuel: "How long will you grieve for Saul, whom I have rejected as king of Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and be on your way. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have chosen my king from among his sons."

We all suffer setbacks in our lives. We all have plans that just don’t work out. We all know what it is like to have to start over from scratch. When faced with all these things we are often tempted to grieve or give up, but God reminds us that just because things don’t end up how we envisioned them, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t set out again and try to do things right the next time. Failure isn’t something we should fear. No. Not trying is what we should fear. Rarely does anything we do go off without a hitch or a hiccup or an outright disaster. But what matters is trying to do good and avoid evil. God doesn’t want us to grieve our failures, but to learn from them, to fill ourselves up with His grace, and then go back out into the world. Our Heavenly Father wants us to be on our way and not hiding. We might feel sad for ourselves and not want to risk being hurt again, but the only way to do God’s Will is to risk suffering and accept the sword that will pierce our hearts. Spiritual success doesn’t mean we would be called upon to make great sacrifices... in truth it may mean making even greater ones than we ever imagined.

How can we overcome our failures? What can we do to combat the discouraging emotions we suffer after a setback? How can we learn from our mistakes and go back out into the world and try again?

O Lord, fill us with your grace after our failures and send up back into the world.

Amen.

Thirty-Fourth Friday of Ordinary Time

Consider the fig tree and all the other trees. When their buds burst open, you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near; in the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near. Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

Jesus’ words will not pass away. His Truth will triumph over ignorance and deception. His commandments to know, love, and serve God and His children will always remain. His promise of life after death for those who follow him will never go unfulfilled. His words of forgiveness and mercy will echo throughout eternity. Everything Jesus said was to enlighten us and lead us to a never-ending life with him in heaven. We would do well in this life to remember his Good News and live it out to our fullest.

Have we listened to and learned from God’s words in scripture? Are we listening to God’s inspirations through the Holy Spirit? How can we make the gospel message of Christ into the source, center, and summit of our lives?

O Lord, may we be incarnations of your divine word.

Amen.