Ezekiel 34:11-16, Romans 5:5-11, Psalm 23:1-6, Luke 15:3-7

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

FEAST OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

Ezekiel 34:11-16, Romans 5:5-11, Psalm 23:1-6, Luke 15:3-7

Ezekiel 34:11-16

My soul’s beloved, long before the Father sent You into the world as one of us, as a Man, He gave us this assurance that God would be our Shepherd, a Shepherd like no other. Ezekiel prophecies and makes known the nature of the Shepherd that God would send to care for His flock. The people He had chosen for Himself from all the nations and make His Own. He Himself would go out and look for those that were lost, those who had strayed, those who were sick and He would lead them back into the fold. He would do all that was required in ensuring that they grazed on good pasture. The sick He would tend and restore to health. The weak He would make strong. All would dwell in His Presence, under His rule which is a rule of love, compassion and mercy and true justice for all. Thank You my soul’s beloved for fulfilling each one of these awesome promises. Thank You for being our Good Shepherd, even as You are our King, our God and our Lord.

Romans 5:5-11

My soul’s beloved, St. Paul reminds us that our hope is built, rooted, and grounded on a sure foundation because You have poured Your Holy Spirit into our hearts and He keeps alive the love of God made manifest in You. He is the fulfillment of Your promise to us not to leave us orphans. He draws us into the same love that binds You to the Father and Himself making You One God and He makes us a part of this awesome mystery of love as we are made partakers of the Love of God and sharers in the Life of God in You and through You.

While we were still separated from God and wallowing in sin, unworthy even of being saved because of our willful disobedience and our proclivity to sin You who are sinless came into the world as one like us in all things save sin to take upon Yourself our guilt, our shame and our punishments paying the price of our redemption with Your life and saving us for eternal damnation which is eternal separation from God. Thank You for laying down Your life for us in death so we can be raised up to new life in Your resurrection.

We owe You, my soul’s beloved, a debt of gratitude that can only be repaid by our little love, our faithfulness to Your commandment of Love and in turn to lay down our lives for one another in imitation of You our King, our Good Shepherd and our God.

Psalm 23:1-6

Luke 15:3-7

My soul’s beloved, Eternal and glorious Word of the Father, only You can use words in just the way You do evoking powerful images of how God loves us. Tenderly, sweetly, compassionately, mercifully, and beyond measure.

Thank You for looking upon us as weak sheep who without a shepherd would stray be lost and fall prey to wild beasts. Thank You for seeking us out no matter how far we wander or how dangerous the territory and bringing us back to safety and to good pasture. 

Thank You for revealing to us how much God loves sinners and how He would go to any lengths to save them from their stupidity and ignorance. Thank You for laying down Your life for us so we could be saved. Thank You for those times when lacking strength of my own You carried me, fed me and gently led me back to safety and to Yourself.