Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119)
I Corinthians 11:17-33 & Luke 7:1-10 Jesus, along with St Paul and all the saints, as well as the centurion of Capernaum, were the real thing – they were genuine because their faith, hope and love were genuine. As I rush through life, moving from one task to the other, jammed right against the next appointment, itself nose-to-nose with the next text or the next obligation, there is little room for either preparation or reflection. This race through life plays havoc with my deliberate commitment to mercy-driven faith, hope and compassion. On the fly, it is much easier to depend on my own resources and sense of justice than on Grace; to snap back with a smart-mouthed reply; to make speedy assumptions and then rely on faulty expectations. Then my life becomes littered with sharp-edged fragments of communication and knee-jerk speeches and acts of passive or violent aggression. But when I take time to mindfully be kind and patient, and a heart with ears* with the person at hand, whether man, woman, child, or God himself, then my faith, hope and love grow from roots of mercy and I also become genuine. What do I need to ‘suffer’ and to hear-fully engage in order for my faith, hope and love to become genuine? Holy Spirit of God, help my faith, hope and love to be genuine. I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart. (Psalm 40:8) Fill up the spare moments of your life with praise and thanksgiving. This joyous discipline will help you live in the intimacy of My Presence. Sarah Young, Jesus Calling (Jan 7) *See Dr. Marshall Rosenberg’s work on Non-violent Communication. (2005) Practical Spirituality: The Spiritual Basis of Nonviolent Communication. (32 pages) ISBN 978-1892005144 www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei
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Hebrews 5:7-9 & John 19:25-27 Happily following Jesus as he heals the sick, provides food for the hungry and performs miracles great and small is relatively easy. What is much harder is being obedient in suffering, as he was throughout his Ministry and Passion. Just as I was obedient to a surgeon as the tumor over my heart was removed, so Jesus was –and I need to be –obedient to the Great Physician in order that healing might be complete. Mother Mary was acquainted with great sorrows along with her Son. In the same way in my life, I will be acquainted with grief and other forms of sufferings, if I, like Mary and Christ Jesus (and Joseph), align myself with God’s will. Then I, like the Holy Family, will be ready to rejoice at the moment of new life, when the Resurrection of Jesus is again enacted, this time through my own life. Do I have the courage and fortitude to be as obedient in suffering as Jesus and his Mother? Christ Jesus, teach me your obedience in suffering. Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God. (Psalm 31:5) Fill up the spare moments of your life with praise and thanksgiving. This joyous discipline will help you live in the intimacy of My Presence. Sarah Young, Jesus Calling (Jan 7) www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei
Luke 6:27-38 Whenever my thoughts, words, and actions are resentful, preferential or judgemental they come from my own self-centredness, not from the mercy of God. But when I am depending on God’s mercy for my inspiration I generate an attitude of service rather than resentment, of recognizing the dignity of others, rather than elitism, and of forgiveness rather than judgement. As God is merciful to me, a sinner, ‘just’ another one of his children, so I am designed to be merciful to others who are sinners and ‘just’ other ones of his children. What is motivating me –my own pride or God’s mercy? Christ Jesus, help me be merciful, just as my Father is merciful. Search me, O God, and know my thoughts. (Psalm 139:23) Fill up the spare moments of your life with praise and thanksgiving. This joyous discipline will help you live in the intimacy of My Presence. Sarah Young, Jesus Calling (Jan 7) www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei Luke 6:20 -26 Poverty, hunger, grief, persecution – these are all oppressive, and at times depressing, states of life. My own natural response to any one of these difficulties can be fear or even rage. But Jesus reminds us in the beatitudes that poverty, hunger, grief and persecution are not ends in themselves, but can become paths of grace. When I respond to these struggles with faith, hope and love, I am in the company of the Saints who have gone before me, and stand to be blessed with peace and joy. Will I react against the hard times of my life relying on my own devices, or will I live into the challenges of my state in life considering the grace and the mercy of God? Holy Spirit of Jesus, teach me to view the challenges of my life in your way. For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope... I will let you find me... (Jeremiah 29:11,12) Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open. Corrie Ten Boom . www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca & Gospel Mystery of the Day on Facebook Soli ad gloriam Dei
1 Corinthians 6, 1-11 & Luke 6:12-19 Resolving conflicts and making choices both have the potential to keep me awake at night. If I am depending on my own logic and thought processes, I can waste a lot of time and energy working through thoughts of personal vengeance or debating the pros and cons of various choices in my life, ad nauseum. When I am caught up in such brainwaves, it is hard to trust God, and to perceive his will. But when I pray and ask God for help in times of conflict or decision-making, a wealth of wisdom and grace opens before me. When I enter into God’s perspective and God’s will through prayer in any circumstance, the burden is much lighter, and I can rest in peace – whether awake through hours of night time prayer like Jesus, or asleep in the tranquility of reconciliation with others who may have wronged me. Do I truly want conflicts resolved and choices to be made under the direction of God’s grace? Holy Spirit of Jesus, teach me the way through conflict and choices. For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory. (Psalm 149:) Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open.” Corrie Ten Boom . 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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