Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119)
John 17:11-19 I can engage in all kinds of disciplines and sacramentals to try to sanctify myself. But in reality, only the Word of God can align my heart and soul with his merciful nature. The Truth that is Love and Love in Truth alone are able to purify my heart and make me holy. As Jesus lived into his final hours with his disciples, he prayed, “Holy Father...Protect them from the evil one... Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.” Will I try to protect myself from the bite of evil by swatting at all that is unholy, or will I become sanctified by the grace of God as I ingest the Word of God by receiving the sacraments, prayerfully meditating on scripture, and contemplating the Word of the Father, Christ Jesus? Lord God, sanctify me in the truth of your Word. Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. (Psalm 68:19) Don’t bother to give God instructions, just report for duty. Corrie Ten Boom www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei
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John 17:1-11
There are so many things to accomplish! So many plans, so many practices and so many projects to complete with all the skills and abilities that have been developed in the years I have been given to live! But what is the work that God has given me to do? Jesus, too, as well as the Apostle Paul, with their seemingly limitless talents could have chalked up so many accomplishments in their life times. But for both Jesus and St. Paul, it was the work that God had given them to do, specifically proclaiming the Good News of the mercy of God, that was their focus in life. What is the work God has given me to do to bring about his designs on earth? Lord God, help me finish what you have given me to do. Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. (Psalm 68) Faith liberates. It liberates love and hope. If I am free to love and free to hope, what more do I want of life? Catherine Doherty www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei John 16:23-28
In the years they had with Jesus, his disciples had been used to asking their Master for help, for healing and for hope. Jesus realised how much they depended on him for instruction and inspiration as they worked with him to bring about the kingdom of God. Like any good teacher, Jesus left plans for his students so that they would continue to learn and to work in his absence. He had already told them about the Holy Spirit, the Helper, who would be his substitute. Now he revealed to them the second part of the plan. He reminded them that they can ask anything of Father God who loves them, as friends of his Son, Jesus. Indeed, they need only ask God for help, healing and hope to continue their work, and they will receive it, so that their joy may become complete, beyond all pain, all weakness or insufficiency. What help, healing or hope do I need so that my joy can be complete? Holy Spirit, teach me about asking God for anything. Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with loud songs of joy. (Psalm 47:1) Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier. Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei John 16:16-20 An encounter with Christ Jesus inevitably resulted in transformation (either for, or against, him) in his day and still in ours. It is also true that pain can become a building block of deep and lasting joy, witness the Resurrection. The Problem of Pain, as C.S.Lewis called it, is perhaps the biggest challenge we can bring to the healing presence of Jesus. When pain, whether of body or soul, arises in me, I always have a choice. When I choose to rely on my own resources and the science of the malady, pain of any kind draws me into a vortex of self-pity, often rendering me too exhausted and heartless to continue to walk the journey of life with Jesus. But when I choose to allow the Holy Spirit of Jesus to intervene in my experience of hurt, He transforms my pain into a deep joy, enlivened by true faith, hope and love. Am I willing to deliberately bring the aching places in my life to Christ, to allow Him to turn them into his unshakable joy? Christ Jesus, turn my present pain into your great joy. O sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvellous things. (Psalm 98) Peace begins with a smile. Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei John 15:26-16:4 Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit keep me from stumbling… We are made to walk the earth, both literally and figuratively –physically and spiritually –not to stumble and fall face first in the dust, grazing knees, stressing joints, or worse still, breaking bones. Stumbling along a bumpy path is challenging in daylight, let alone in the dark. Yet when I turn even slightly away from Christ, the Light of the World, and try to find my own way through life’s challenges, I often end up spiritually feeling my way along a gloomy path, and stumbling over the challenges in my way. Thanks be to God - that Jesus bestows on us, for the asking, the guidance of the Holy Spirit who is able to lead us in Christ’s own footsteps along the path of abundant and eternal life. “Yes,” say the Master, “There are stones of stumbling along the way. But I am the Way, the Truth and the Life around them.” Am I content with stumbling along life’s way, or will I walk in the light and knowledge of the Holy Spirit of Christ Jesus? Holy Spirit, keep me from stumbling. Know that the Lord is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people. (Psalm 100:3) The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him. G.K. Chesterton Paraphrase: The true pilgrim walks not because she knows what is in front of her, but because she loves Who is beside and within her. www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei |
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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