Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119)
Colossian 1:1-14 & Luke 1:26-56 September 8th marks the celebration of the birth of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Although it is not as large a celebration as the nativity of her son, it is similarly significant to humanity. As a young person from a good and practising Jewish family Mary was ‘found to be’ a faithful young woman ‘full of grace’. Certainly Mary knew scripture by heart – the Magnificat she recited when visiting Elisabeth is basically a recitation of Psalm 146. And I can picture Mary being so free from the cares and worries of this life, described later by her Son as the ‘weeds’ of our life journeys, that her days could have truly been full of the virtues of Faith, Hope and Love, as well as the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control. Mary comprehended the grace of God, and had brought it so entirely into herself - had apprehended God’s Grace - that the Holy Spirit was able to easily fertilize the seeds of the Word within her to be able to bring about the birth of Jesus. And this Jesus, the Son of Humankind who was so purely the Son of God, was the one (human) being that could redeem the world –by his Nativity, ministry, passion, death and resurrection. Like Mary, each human being has seeds of the Word of God within our beings – we are made in the image and likeness of God. Am I too full of myself or the temporal things of life to let these seeds grow? Am I too full of other things to comprehend God’s grace, let alone to apprehend – take in –God’s grace in my life, to be ‘’full of Grace’ like Jesus’ mother, Mary? Will I pause today to consider the Grace of God at work, beyond, above, around, beyond, and within me? Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me comprehend, and apprehend, the fullness of God’s grace. My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour. (Psalm 146:1-2 & Luke 1:46-47) For it is by God’s grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God’s gift so no one can boast about it. St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians 2: 8-9 Soli ad gloriam Dei Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook &www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca
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Gospel Mystery of the Day Tuesday, Sept 5, 2023
Good Morning! Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119) Romans 12:1-2 & Matt 16:21-27 & Luke 4:16-30 Father God, refresh my mind to discern your will … When a page on my computer browser becomes unresponsive, fragmented or nonsense, I press the ‘refresh’ button, and then I can continue. Similarly as a human being with amazing powers of imagination, thought, and understanding, when I get carried away with my own programs, I feel that God is unresponsive, my version of Truth becomes fragmented or tangled, and “Love” ceases to make sense. It is then that I need to refresh my relationship with Father God, and my Redeemer, Jesus, allowing the Holy Spirit of God to activate my life drivers, comb out tangles in my relationships, and bring the bits and pieces of my knowledge and love of God together. Then I can again dwell deeply in his Grace and Peace. Two scriptural cases in point underscore this principle of renewal. When St. Peter protested Jesus’ explanation that he would be tortured and killed and then rise again, Jesus had to rebuke Peter and refresh his understanding of the (often surprising!) will of God, and purpose of Christ’s ministry. Because Peter accepted Jesus’ correction, he was able to better discern God’s will going forward through the next two decades, fearlessly proclaiming the Truth of the Gospel and helping millions over millennia to understand the Grace of God. In the reading from Luke, the people of Nazareth clearly needed to press “Reset” as well. Leaning on their own understanding, they thought they ‘knew’ Jesus the carpenter, the son of Joseph, and violently rejected him from their faith community. I wonder if perhaps one or two Nazarenes, who were present that day, finally did allow God to ‘refresh’ their minds so that they were able to discern the will of God proclaimed by Jesus, that which was good and acceptable and perfect for both God and humankind? Perhaps going forward, they devoted their lives to the Truth, to Jesus, by taking up their own crosses and following Him. Will I wait on the Lord by prayer to allow the Holy Spirit to renew my mind to know – and do – God’s will? Father God, refresh my mind to discern your will. Indeed you love truth in the heart. In the secret of my heart teach me wisdom. (Psalm 51:5) God’s perspective can change and heal ours. Anonymous Soli ad gloriam Dei Gospel Mystery of the Day on FaceBook &www.gospelmysteryoftheday.ca Matthew 23:13-28 & Psalm 51 Life happens and becoming soiled, whether it be inside or outside, is the result. And Bright Whites – that’s the sign of a good laundry experience! We all need cleaning up whether we are Pharisees and scribes of Jesus’ day or common folk of the twenty-first century. The question is, how will we handle cleaning up all the mud life slings at us, and the rot and decay that builds up interiorly in our hearts, minds and souls as we process the challenges and hurts of our life journeys. With six volleys of Woe are you… directed at the religious leaders of the day, Jesus outlined the various ways that human beings attempt to clean themselves up: adopting religious signs and symbols, projecting a ‘good’ image, dressing the part, performing rituals despite interior truths nagging at their consciences, bringing attention to their piety and badgering others to follow them. In the end, Jesus accused them of white-washing themselves, that is, mixing up builders’ lime with chalk, egg whites and water. White-washing is one way to do personal laundry; just dip the brush in the pail and slap it on, let it dry, and it’s white all right! But the Psalmist has it right – Wash me, Lord, and I shall be whiter than snow. It is only our Creator God who can restore our hearts and souls – and minds – to their original bright beauty; and it is by humbly paying attention to the truths of our hearts that we are able to pray God to do our life’s soiled laundry in His way. Am I intent on white-washing my life with earthly ingredients and outward shows of piety? Or will I, like King David, with humility ask the Lord in his compassion to purify me and wash away my iniquity? Father God, wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. Indeed you love truth in the heart. In the secret of my heart teach me wisdom. (Psalm 51:5) Look for Christ and you will find him. And in Him, everything else. C. S. Lewis Soli ad gloriam Dei 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
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