1 Kings 19:16, 19-21, Galatians:1, 13-18, Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11, Luke 9:51-62

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

1 Kings 19:16, 19-21, Galatians:1, 13-18, Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11, Luke 9:51-62 

 1 Kings 19:16, 19-21

 My soul's beloved once again we see that it is God who calls,  it is God who appoints and it is God who equips us to do the work that He Himself desires us to do. The work is His and so He provides all that is needed for us to carry out His mission. All He requires is a humble, obedient heart and a willing spirit. When our time on earth is over God will appoint another to continue the mission of spreading the Good News to the ends of the earth. We do all we are appointed to do in the lifespan granted to us and at the end we can go in peace confidant that those who come after us will continue the mission until the appointed time when You will return in glory and power to claim Your inheritance.

Sometimes like Elisha, our initial reaction to the call might be hesitation because we believe there are things we ought to do first however, once we realize that the time is now and cannot be delayed, we must trust God to take care of everything else. When we say yes it must be a total submission to the call and to the will of God.

 

Galatians:1, 13-18

My soul's beloved, St. Paul testifies that it is You and the Father who gave him his mission to spread the Good News of salvation among the pagan nations. He who was a powerful enemy of the nascent Christian faith and sought to imprison and persecute its followers was himself called by God to become an Apostle in a personal encounter with You. 

Created in love by God, we are called from the moment of our conception to make You known and loved. The Good News is this that God became Man so that we could come to know and love God and in turn make Him known and loved. 

Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11

My soul's beloved, You are my refuge I know that hidden in You I am safe from the wiles of the enemy. You hold me secure in Your heart for I belong to You. I praise You and I thank You for all the good things You have given me both spiritual and temporal. I will bless You with every breath I breathe during the hours I am awake and at the close of day when I close my eyes to rest. Thank You for the wisdom You give me through Your Word, Your Church and Your Spirit. I thank You for showing me the Way, for revealing the Truth and for granting me Life. Thank You that my life will not end in eternal death but to eternal life.

Luke 9:51-62 

 My soul's beloved, in today's Gospel passage You remind us that at the time of Your visitation to us there might be some who are not ready to receive You and while Your followers might want to call down fire and brimstone on them You advise patience. We ought not to provoke anyone rather we give them time and through grace, they will come to You. 

We then go on to see three different people each with a different response to the call of discipleship. The first one is full of admiration for You and is ready to follow You without fully understanding what such a commitment will require of him. You give him a reality check by making it clear to him that You have nothing by way of material comforts to offer him. The second would be disciple whom You call personally wishes to wait until he no longer has personal responsibilities - to him You say that it is more important to follow You than to wait until you bury a loved one. And finally the third one who is called tries to buy time by saying he wants to say goodbye but You bluntly tell him that once we have decided to follow You we cannot look back or we will not be able to advance in our mission to establish God's Kingdom on earth.

When God calls our answer must always be an unequivocal yes. We can trust You to take care of the details.