Kings 19:9, 11-16, Psalm 27:7-8, 13-14, Matthew 5:27-32

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

1 Kings 19:9, 11-16, Psalm 27:7-8, 13-14, Matthew 5:27-32

1 Kings 19:9, 11-16

My soul’s beloved, Elijah was alone in a cave and You spoke to him asking him what  he was doing there? No matter where we are You will always find us and minister to us. You requested Elijah to get up and stand on the mountain and to wait there for You. Each time we come to church to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, we climb up Your holy mountain and there we encounter our God not in an earth shattering way but we are spiritually one with You through the simple offering of bread and wine which You transform in Yourself. You come to us as gently as You came to Elijah on a zephyr. Elijah had fled to the cave because he was consumed with a passionate jealous love for You and a burning anger that Your people had forsaken God. But You told him to go back for he had a mission to fulfill before You would take him to Yourself.

We too cannot run away from the world which seems to be consumed by evil rather, it is our mission field, and we are to make You known and loved through our daily witness, in season and out of season and in the end You will come to take us home to Yourself. 

Psalm 27:7-8, 13-14

My soul’s delight all who seek You will find You. You will hear the voice of all who call on You. Our hope in You is sure for You will never forsake those whom You have called by name, whom You have carved on the palm of Your hand. And in the end we know that You will carry us home. We will be full of courage and with Your help endure to the end for we know in whom we have trusted and in whom we have believed.

Matthew 5:27-32

My soul’s beloved, the standards of the world keep getting lower and lower until they are scraping the very depths of the gutter. Once we give way to the seductions of the world, the lure of the flesh and the deadly temptations that are concealed in a perceived good we are well on the road to eternal damnation. This is why You tell us not to wait until the disease has spread but to rid ourselves of whatever it is that causes us to sin. We must be prepared to deal violently with personal sin doing whatever is necessary to rid ourselves of those people or places that can cause us to experience eternal death.  Thank You for revealing to us how deadly sin is and how vigilant we ought to be lest in a moment of weakness we succumb. Thank You for the Church, for the Sacraments, for Your holy ministers and for all who help us to lead holy lives.