Third Thursday of Advent

Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory. The LORD's are the earth and its fullness; the world and those who dwell in it. For he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.

All of creation is God’s and we would do well to remember that. Nothing we have is our own. Everything is a gift from God. Our lives, our food, our drink, our clothing, our homes, our goods... all of them come from our Heavenly Father, who knows what is best for His children. All the good fruits we produce in thought, word, or work find their source, center, and summit in God. He established everything in the universe for our own good and the good of all His children and this is why we should let Him enter into our hearts and minds. He is the Lord of our lives and the King of our spirits. He is the life-giving water that sustains us in the dryness of the world. He is the warming light that nourishes our souls. In Him, we find both Creator and Savior and a King of Kings.

Do we remember that nothing good comes from us alone, but from our participation in God’s Will? Do we give thanks to God for all He has done for us? Are we willing to let Him into our lives when the rest of the world tells us to shut Him out and be “self-sufficient”?

O Lord, enter into our hearts and be glorified.

Amen.

First Sunday of Advent

May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we have for you, so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen.

Jesus came into the world through the Incarnation as a little child. He came to proclaim the Good News, save souls, and prepare the world for his next coming. As this Christmas season begins, we would do well to keep in mind both the First and the Second Coming. The first because through it we were freed from sin and saved from death. The second because it promises everlasting life and the unfathomable experience of being in God’s Divine Presence forever. In both cases, God will increase us, strengthen our hearts, and make us holy. The Incarnation was the beginning of our Christian faith, the Second Coming will be its pinnacle. We can only hope the way we spend our lives will lead us to Hosanna in the Highest and a life full of spiritual blessings and saving graces.

In what ways are we preparing ourselves for the coming of Christmas? How can we also prepare ourselves for the Second Coming? How can we help others to prepare for and anticipate these spiritual events?

O Lord, strengthen our hearts and make them holy.

Amen.

Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

John heralded his coming by proclaiming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel; and as John was completing his course, he would say, 'What do you suppose that I am' I am not he. Behold, one is coming after me; I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet."

Just like John the Baptist, we are all called to proclaim a life of repentance to all of God’s children. We are asked to be prophets of the God News spreading God’s Word to all those whom we meet each day. No, we are not Jesus or John... and perhaps we are not worthy to unfasten the sandals of either man’s feet, but we have the same mission as both of them... the conversion of sinners and the salvation of souls. It is a vocation all Christians have and we must do our best to prepare the way of our Lord and God... for He is coming again and when he does we want to be able to stand before him and say, “We did our best to bring you into the world and bring others into your Way, Truth, and Life.”

Are we fulfilling our calling to be prophets of God’s Good News? How can we spread the Word of God to the world around us? In what ways can we prepare the way of the Lord?

O Lord, we are not worthy to unfasten your sandals, but with your heavenly aid, we shall unfasten the hearts of others so your Love, Mercy, and Grace can enter into them more fully.

Amen.

The Ascension of the Lord

When they had gathered together they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" He answered them, "It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has established by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." When he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight.

Things in our lives don’t always go as we imagined them and sometimes that is a good thing. The disciples of Christ were so concerned about restoring the kingdom of Israel, they were blinding themselves to other possibilities. We do this, too. And it is by the grace of God that our eyes are opened through the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. His guidance can show us a new way we haven’t considered before, one which will give us a greater power for good and make us more effective witnesses of our faith. The restoration of God’s Kingdom on earth isn’t something we can control or predict. All we can do is to prepare for God’s coming, doing everything we can to be ready for the day when Jesus will return and usher in a new age of everlasting life with him.

What isn’t going as planned in our lives? Have we thanked God for these obstacles and asked Him to show us the way to a better life? How can we become better witnesses to the Way, the Truth, and the Life of Jesus Christ?

O Lord, we look forward to your return.

Amen.

Third Monday of Advent

Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David; As king he shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah shall be saved, Israel shall dwell in security. This is the name they give him: "The LORD our justice."

God is just. He never burdens us with trials or obstacles we can’t carry or overcome. Like Mary and Joseph, we will be faced by many difficulties because of our faith in God, but as long as we trust in Him and live in the footsteps of Jesus, then we will be saved and secure our souls from evil and death.

What trials and obstacles are we facing? How can we show our trust in God as we face these difficulties? Are we truly doing a good job of preparing the way of the Lord in our lives?

O Lord, may your justice rule over us and the whole world.

Amen.

Seventeenth Thursday of Ordinary Time

Then the cloud covered the meeting tent, and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling. Moses could not enter the meeting tent, because the cloud settled down upon it and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling. Whenever the cloud rose from the Dwelling, the children of Israel would set out on their journey. But if the cloud did not lift, they would not go forward; only when it lifted did they go forward.

Our bodies, minds, and hearts should be like the Dwelling Moses built for the Ark of the Covenant. They should be places where God is made present through our thoughts, words, and works. God should be able to settle within us and His Glory shine through us. His Holy Spirit should lead us on our faith journey, inspiring us to do good and avoid evil. We cannot make ourselves into a Dwelling of the Lord without being faithful, hopeful, and loving. We also must be humble enough to allow Him to fill us with His Will so that we might go forth into the world and bear Him to those in most need of His Love and Mercy. We cannot be resting places for the Lord, if we do not do our best to cleanse ourselves of imperfections, weaknesses, and sins. God understands we are not perfect, he does not expect us to be so, but He does expect us to be welcoming of Him and to desire to make our hearts into places worthy of Him just as Mary and Joseph did their best to prepare the humble manger for the arrival of this son and Savior.

In what ways do we prepare ourselves to be Dwellings for God? What can we do to cleanse ourselves of those things that keep us from being worthy resting places for our Heavenly Father? Are we willing to let God determine how we proceed in our lives?

O Lord, settle upon our hearts and fill them with your glory.

Amen.

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

For he is like the refiner’s fire, or like the fuller’s lye. He will sit refining and purifying silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi, Refining them like gold or like silver that they may offer due sacrifice to the Lord. Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalem will please the Lord, as in the days of old, as in years gone by.

Just as John the Baptist was the messenger of the Lord and the preparer of His way into the world, so must we become heralds of God’s Will. Being His messenger means not only listening to the Good News, but proclaiming it through our every word and work. It means preparing ourselves in such a way to make our souls into living temples where God can dwell. It also requires us to perform acts of charity and mercy for others so that their hearts will be open to the coming of the Holy Spirit. We cannot do these things if we don’t refine our faith and let God purge us of our sins and imperfections. It is only through His Grace that we can increase in spiritual richness and attain our highest purpose.

Are we messengers of God or the world? How can we become better prophets of God’s Love and Divine Truth? What can we do to purify our souls?

O Lord, refine us and make us into faithful messengers of your Good News.

Amen.

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one of whom I said, ‘A man is coming after me who ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’ I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing with water was that he might be made known to Israel.”

The world tells us to strive to be on top, to be number one. But that is not the point of life. John realized this. His whole life was devoted to one thing: preparing the way of the Lord. His disciples would have made him into a false Messiah if he’d let them. He could have turned his back on his mission and choose to make himself number one. However, he didn’t because he realized the only way his life would be fulfilled was if he decreased so Jesus could increase. He recognized something greater than himself and placed his own pride aside and welcomed the coming of the Lord. In the same way, we are called to recognize the first place God should hold in our own lives. He should be the source, center, and summit of our lives. We should be willing to give up anything for Him. And like John, our lives should be a constant preparation for the Lord leading others and ourselves closer to God.

Have we given God first place in our lives? If not, then how can we put Him above all else? How do our lives make God known to others?

O Lord, you will always come first.

Amen.

First Sunday of Advent

Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming,
he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.

In this season of Advent, we are all called to prepare ourselves for the celebration of the coming of Christ into the world on Christmas. However, we are also preparing ourselves for the Second Coming of Christ as well. Both the Incarnation and Second Coming are central beliefs in our faith. They are the bookends to what it means to be Christian. It is our belief in the Incarnation that is the bedrock of our faith. It reveals to us a loving Savior, who was willing to suffer, die, and be buried for us so that we could rise again with him. It is the Second Coming that gives us hope in a merciful judgment at the end of time and the possibility of eternal life spent with God if we follow His commandments, teachings, and inspirations. Taken together these two revelations provide us with the greatest expressions of love we will ever experience. And it is this love we are all called to imitate throughout our lives by being there for God and others, acting with love toward God and His children, and showing mercy toward those who have trespassed against us.

How can we prepare ourselves to celebrate the gift of the Incarnation at Christmas? Are we preparing ourselves for the Second Coming by living good and faithful lives? How can we give thanks to God for these great gifts, both past and future?

O Lord, help us to stay awake and prepare a place for you in our hearts.

Amen.

Thirty-Third Friday of Ordinary Time

Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them, “It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.”

The temples of our hearts need the same cleansing as the Temple area in Jerusalem during Jesus’ time and just like Jesus, we need to drive out those things that are not in accord with God’s Will. We need to make ourselves into houses of prayer with the incense of our prayers rising up to God in thanksgiving and praise. We cannot do this if we harbor sins within our hearts. We cannot do this if we live lives of sin. To transform ourselves into worthy temples to God, we need to rid ourselves of our pride, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, greed, and sloth. Then and only then can we make room for God to enter into our hearts, minds, and bodies and triumph over sin and death.

What sins do we need to cleanse from our hearts? How can we prepare ourselves to be true houses of prayer? Are we ready to live lives of virtue?

O Lord, make us temples of your love, mercy, and grace.

Amen.

Saturday after Epiphany

“Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you testified, here he is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.”John answered and said, “No one can receive anything except what has been given from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said that I am not the Christ, but that I was sent before him. The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens for him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made complete. He must increase; I must decrease.”

John reminds us that in order to be a true disciple of Christ that we must decrease in order for Jesus to increase in us. We are supposed to be the best men and maids of honor to the glorious union between Jesus and the Church, his spiritual bride. We are meant to prepare the way of the Lord into this world through our thoughts, words, and works. We share in the joy of Jesus’ union with his beloved Church through the sacraments. We stand by him, listen for him, and celebrate the vows he has made to the Church through the gospels. What is even more profound is that we are all called to be members of that Church and be espoused to Christ through our faith by finding our fulfillment through emptying ourselves and allowing Jesus to fill us with himself.

Are we preparing the way of the Lord not only into our lives, but the lives of others? Do we rejoice in the message of the gospels? Are we willing to decrease so that Jesus might increase through us?

O Lord, increase within us and through us to others.

Amen.