Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119)
Colossians 3:15-17 To me, the extraordinary Peace of Christ is like holy oil - the oil of consecration, of healing, and of the anointing of the Baptised - that is always available to us as followers of Jesus. Like oil, the Peace of Jesus touches our forehead or our hands, when we utter his name in prayer “Jesus” (aka ‘God Saves’) and opens our hearts and souls, and even our bodies, to His way of perceiving circumstances, events or relationships in which we find ourselves. When I let this Peace of Christ gradually soak into my life, it begins to delineate how I respond to the good, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly things of life. Then, rather than being pushed and pulled by transient thoughts and opinions, emotions and prejudices, I can intentionally and stolidly continue to row the boat of my life through the storms of life accompanied by the Prince of Peace. What an extraordinary blessing it is to let the Peace of Christ guide and guard my heart. What is ruling my heart today? Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me let your peace rule my heart. And now we follow you with our whole heart. No one who trusts you will ever be disappointed. (Daniel 3:17) All your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in. CS Lewis, Mere Christianity Soli ad gloriam Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook & www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca
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Acts 9:1-20 Ananias knew well what Saul of Tarsus had been up to, dragging Christians out of their home for incarceration, torture or even stoning. When the Lord placed it in his heart to “Go [to Saul] for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles, Kings and the people of Israel..,” Ananias protested, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man!” In these times of global fear, uncertainty, and terror, we too have heard from many about these times. News reports, internet feeds and even local conversations proclaim all the ‘truths’, uncertainties and news flashes, much as the Christian community did about the persecution of Christians in the days of the Early Church. We hear from many all the things about these times; but do we hear what God is saying, and where he is directing us to focus our affiliation and attention? Ananias, through prayer and years of listening to God’s Word in the Holy Scriptures and prayers of Israel, recognized what God was saying to him. He had the clarity and then the courage to be directed by God to go to Saul and heal and teach the man who had been persecuting his fellow Christians. And because Ananias listened to what God was saying beyond the popular discourses of his day, God was able to do what He was saying, that He could shape Saul of Tarsus into St. Paul, the godly Apostle of Christ Jesus. Will I listen to what everyone is saying about the pandemic, or will I listen for, and live into what God is saying about this these difficult times? Holy Spirit, help me have the clarity and courage to act on what God is saying. I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. (Psalm 116: 2) We tend to think of worries as our lot in life—like responsibilities we’re to handle without “bothering” God. But really our lot is to walk obediently with God and trust Him to do the heavy lifting in our life. Charles Stanley Soli ad gloriam Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook & www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca Acts 8: 26-40 The Apostle Philip was sent by the Holy Spirit to a lonely road to proclaim the Good News, to whom he was not sure. He simply and obediently set out open to whatever and whomever God had in mind. In these days when we are ‘locked down’, the Holy Spirit is still prompting his people to go where he is sending us to whomever he places before us – to write an email, connect with someone by Facebook, make a phone call, have a distanced conversation outside, or write a letter or a greeting card. And always, we are being called to respond to that person’s reality, as Philip did with the Ethopian court official, and proclaim the Good News of the Life, Light, and Love of Christ Jesus. We don’t need to wait to be selected by a religious community or commissioned by a church. Like Philip we need only be open to the prompting of the Holy Spirit of God to be sent to Proclaim the Gospel of the Living God to someone God has in mind. Will I go where I am sent to proclaim the Good News? Holy Spirit of God, help me go where you send me. Let the sound of his praise be heard, who has kept us among the living, and has not let our feet slip. (Psalm 66:8-9) Preach the Gospel at all times, using words only when necessary. St. Francis of Assisi Soli ad gloriam Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook & www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca 1 John 2:1-5 Human love springs from God’s love, but the perfection of God’s love in a human life goes way beyond the love you or I can conceive and carry out. Human love is driven by desire, while God’s perfect love is formed by forgiveness. Human love is activated by attraction, but God’s perfect love is created by collaboration and deep connections of spirit. Human love depends on events and circumstances, while God’s perfect love is unconditional, and eternally kind and patient. How can my life manifest the love of God in all of its perfection? St. John urges us to align ourselves with God’s word and obey its edicts of humility, of healing, of forgiveness, of proclaiming the good news of Jesus, and of ‘working for the food that endures, for eternal life.’ Will I be open enough in heart, mind, soul and strength for God to perfect his steadfast style of love in me? Holy Spirit of God, perfect your love in me. One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek: to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple. (Psalm 27:4) I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world. St. Mother Teresa Soli ad gloriam Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook & www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca John 20:11-21 To be able to dwell in the light of Christ, with all the wisdom, warmth and wellbeing of heart, mind, soul and strength that it encompasses, is the greatest privilege for any man, woman or child. How do I come into the light of Christ? Jesus tells us to ‘do what is true’. When I pray out of obligation I am not being true to my own heart. When I eat fast food fast to satiate driving hungers I am over-riding the design of my being. When I ‘do right’ with resentment or any kind of agenda for power and control, I am building a false and faulty presence in the world that is of my own design. But when I pray in heartfelt conversation with my Father in heaven, I am being true to the deep mystery of my being. When I eat, or consume anything, with a sense of gratitude and blessings, taking care to give as much as I receive, my heart, mind, soul and body are filled with the harmonics of God’s mercy. When I do right mindfully for the love of God, I am being true to God’s vision for human community and connections - with God, with the earth, with the people in my life, and with the world at large. Will I do what is true, or be false to my heritage as a beloved child of God? Holy Spirit of God, help me do what is true so I might come to the light of Christ. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God. (John 3:21) Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire! Pope St. John Paul II Soli ad gloriam Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook & www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca |
AuthorBeverly Illauq lives in Kemptville, Ontario, where she greets each morning by seeking the Gospel Mystery of the Day - the Word of the Lord for direct and practical application to the specific challenges & joys of the day. Archives
March 2024
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