Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Read It:
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven".

Reflect on It: Today, we are called to obey and respect the commandments. Jesus comes to fulfill the law. Follow the 10 commandments and you'll be good to go and will be with him in paradise.

Pray about It: Help me Sweet Jesus to follow the boundaries you set up for me, not because I have to, but because I love you. Amen.

Live It! Challenge: Get yourself to confession at any parish in the diocese from 6:30-8 pm.

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March 13, 2012

Read It:

Peter approached Jesus and asked him,
"Lord, if my brother sins against me,
how often must I forgive him?
As many as seven times?"
Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.
That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king
who decided to settle accounts with his servants.
When he began the accounting,
a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount.
Since he had no way of paying it back,
his master ordered him to be sold,
along with his wife, his children, and all his property,
in payment of the debt.
At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said,
'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.'
Moved with compassion the master of that servant
let him go and forgave him the loan.
When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants
who owed him a much smaller amount.
He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,
'Pay back what you owe.'
Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,
'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'
But he refused.
Instead, he had him put in prison
until he paid back the debt.
Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,
they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master
and reported the whole affair.
His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant!
I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.
Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,
as I had pity on you?'
Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers
until he should pay back the whole debt.
So will my heavenly Father do to you,
unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart."

Reflect on It: Today, we see our lesson in humility again. If God has forgiven us, we too are called to forgive our brothers and sisters in Christ. We have to be people of forgiveness and mercy, even when that's hard. Today, let's people who forgive and love with a pure heart.

Pray about It: Lord, help me to forgive the way I want to be forgiven.

Reflect on It: Today, make a good examination of conscience in preparation for confession tomorrow.

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March 12, 2012

Read It:
Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?As the hind longs for the running waters,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Athirst is my soul for God, the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Send forth your light and your fidelity;
they shall lead me on
And bring me to your holy mountain,
to your dwelling-place.
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Then will I go in to the altar of God,
the God of my gladness and joy;
Then will I give you thanks upon the harp,
O God, my God!
R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?

Reflect on It: We are thirsting for God in an intense way! God made us for himself and written on our hearts is the need for him. If we want to be hold the face of God, it's simple. We find the face of God at Church, in the Blessed Sacrament. Quench your thirst, go visit Him who our heart longs for.

Pray about It: Lord, I need you. Help me to be close to you today. Amen.

Live It! Challenge: Today, go pray in front of the tabernacle for 15 minutes and behold the face of God. Boom!

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March 11, 2012

Read It:

 

Since the Passover of the Jews was near,
Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves,
as well as the money changers seated there.
He made a whip out of cords
and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen,
and spilled the coins of the money changers
and overturned their tables,
and to those who sold doves he said,
"Take these out of here,
and stop making my Father's house a marketplace."
His disciples recalled the words of Scripture,
Zeal for your house will consume me.
At this the Jews answered and said to him,
"What sign can you show us for doing this?"
Jesus answered and said to them,
"Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up."
The Jews said,
"This temple has been under construction for forty-six years,
and you will raise it up in three days?"
But he was speaking about the temple of his body.
Therefore, when he was raised from the dead,
his disciples remembered that he had said this,
and they came to believe the Scripture
and the word Jesus had spoken.

While he was in Jerusalem for the feast of Passover,
many began to believe in his name
when they saw the signs he was doing.
But Jesus would not trust himself to them because he knew them all,
and did not need anyone to testify about human nature.
He himself understood it well.

Reflect on It: Today, we see that Jesus is mad that such a mockery has been made about his house. How do we make a mockery of our place where we worship? Sometimes, our hearts are so restless and we stop paying attention to what is happening at mass. Are we making a mockery of mass because of our attitudes? I think today is a lesson in humility.

Pray about It: Sweet Jesus, please help me to never make a mockery of your sacrifice and to honor you through paying attention at mass. I love you Lord.

Live It! Challenge: Really pay attention and pray through mass today!

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March 10, 2012

Read It:
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
"This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."
So to them Jesus addressed this parable.
"A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,
'Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.'
So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings
and set off to a distant country
where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.
When he had freely spent everything,
a severe famine struck that country,
and he found himself in dire need.
So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens
who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.
And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,
but nobody gave him any.
Coming to his senses he thought,
'How many of my father's hired workers
have more than enough food to eat,
but here am I, dying from hunger.
I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,
"Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
I no longer deserve to be called your son;
treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers."'
So he got up and went back to his father.
While he was still a long way off,
his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.
He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him,
'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.'
But his father ordered his servants,
'Quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.'
Then the celebration began.
Now the older son had been out in the field
and, on his way back, as he neared the house,
he heard the sound of music and dancing.
He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him,
'Your brother has returned
and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf
because he has him back safe and sound.'
He became angry,
and when he refused to enter the house,
his father came out and pleaded with him.
He said to his father in reply,
'Look, all these years I served you
and not once did I disobey your orders;
yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends.
But when your son returns
who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,
for him you slaughter the fattened calf.'
He said to him,
'My son, you are here with me always;
everything I have is yours.
But now we must celebrate and rejoice,
because your brother was dead and has come to life again;
he was lost and has been found.'"

Reflect on It: The Story of the Prodigal Son is one that gets to me every time. I think often, we feel like we are the good son who stays around and loves the Lord. While this might be the case, whenever we sin, we squander our inheritance and starve. The Father, who in this story, represents our Heavenly Father welcomes his son back with a party and giving him the best he could ever need or want. This what happens when we return to the father with all of our heart! He slaughters the fattened calf for us. He doesn't count how long we've been away, just that we come back, so today, come back to him with all your heart.

Pray About It: Lord, I long to be reunited to you. Please help me to never sin again. Amen.

Live It! Challenge: Go to confession today.

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March 9, 2012

Read It:
Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:
"Hear another parable.
There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,
put a hedge around it,
dug a wine press in it, and built a tower.
Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.
When vintage time drew near,
he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce.
But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,
another they killed, and a third they stoned.
Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones,
but they treated them in the same way.
Finally, he sent his son to them,
thinking, 'They will respect my son.'
But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,
'This is the heir.
Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.'
They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?"
They answered him,
He will put those wretched men to a wretched death
and lease his vineyard to other tenants
who will give him the produce at the proper times."
Jesus said to them, Did you never read in the Scriptures:

The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful in our eyes?

Therefore, I say to you,
the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you
and given to a people that will produce its fruit."
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables,
they knew that he was speaking about them.
And although they were attempting to arrest him,
they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet.

Reflect on It: The Kingdom of God will be given to those that produce fruits. You are here for a purpose! You are good and you matter! Today, we see our call to live a life that bears fruit for the kingdom of God. Do you live your life like you're going to heaven. Are you encouraging others to do the same? We have to walk in the HOPE and the knowledge that we can get to Heaven and that we desire Heaven. When we desire Heaven, an eternity with Christ, the King, we behave differently and others are guided by our desire to get to Heaven.

Pray about It: Lord, I want to be with you forever. Help me hope in your resurrection and to know that I can be with you in Heaven. Help this to be the desire of my heart as it is the desire of your heart. I love you!


Live It! Challenge: What is one thing you need to change so that you can get to Heaven? Change it!

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Thursday, March 8, 2012

Read It:

Jesus said to the Pharisees:
"There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps
that fell from the rich man's table.
Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died,
he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried,
and from the netherworld, where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off
and Lazarus at his side.
And he cried out, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
for I am suffering torment in these flames.'
Abraham replied, 'My child,
remember that you received what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established
to prevent anyone from crossing
who might wish to go from our side to yours
or from your side to ours.'
He said, 'Then I beg you, father, send him
to my father's house,
for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,
lest they too come to this place of torment.'
But Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the prophets.
Let them listen to them.'
He said, 'Oh no, father Abraham,
but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
Then Abraham said,
'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded
if someone should rise from the dead.'"

 

Reflect on It: What you do in life echoes in eternity! In the gospel, we see that he rich man god his due while on earth and Lazarus, who suffered greatly while on earth, was seated next to Abraham in heaven. The rich man, who did not care for Lazarus at all while on earth, went to hell and was tormented. It's important to see here that what we do in life echoes in eternity. We have to live the life now that we want forever. Do we choose Christ daily? God loves us enough to give us free will. To decide if we want to follow him. Our job is to make sure that what we do honors him. May we be people who get to spend eternity with Jesus and not like the rich man!

 

 

Pray about It: Lord, I desire you. Help me to choose you daily. I love you.

Live It! Challenge: Today, consider one way in which you can live more closely united to Christ.

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