DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts. Ps 95:8
Genesis 18:16-33, Psalm 103:1-4, 8-11,
Matthew 8:18-22
Genesis 18:16-33
My Love, Beloved of my soul,
In today's passage from Scripture taken from Genesis, we see God's close relationship with Abraham. God has chosen Abraham to be the father of all nations and hence desires to share with him that He is about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because their sins cry out to heaven for justice.
When Abraham saw what God was about to do he was not indifferent but responded with empathy for the few good people who lived there. From him, we learn the power of intercession, our attitude in prayer, and persistence in prayer. The first thing Abraham does is to draw nearer to God as he pleads for the lives of the 50 innocent people who may be in those cities. When God agrees to spare their lives, he thinks perhaps there may the less than 50 and so continues to plead for the 45 and so on it goes. Afraid as he is he continues to plead for the innocent until he asks the Lord to be merciful to 10 who may be found to be just and God continues to hear his plea and grant his desire.
Then Abraham drew nearer to him and said:
Abraham spoke up again:
But Abraham persisted,
Then Abraham said, "Let not my Lord grow impatient if I go on.
Still Abraham went on,
"Please, let not my Lord grow angry if I speak up this last time. What if there are at least ten there?" He replied, "For the sake of those ten, I will not destroy it."
My most beloved Lord, grant me this grace as well, not to give up but to continue to pray with confidence, persistence, and perseverance not only for my own needs and for the needs of those I love, but for the whole world as well.
Psalm 103:1-4, 8-11
My Love, Beloved of my soul,
May I never forget the countless blessings You have showered on me all my life and may I never cease to praise You for all that You have done for me. I am aware that I am not as prompt as I ought to be in thanking and praising You as I ought to be. I know that I get so wrapped up in joy and excitement that it takes me a short while before I turn my gaze to You to bless and thank You for answering my prayers and granting my heart's desires.
Above all, Beloved, I desire to thank You for forgiveness of sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Thank You for forgetting all my transgressions and for granting me the grace and strength to sin no more in this powerful Sacrament of Grace.
Thank You, Beloved for Your graciousness in providing us with all we need to live holy, pure, and blameless lives in the Sacraments that are freely and always available to us in the Church.
Keep me safe Beloved for eternal life.
Matthew 8:18-22
My Love, Beloved of my soul,
Matthew tells us that when You saw the crowd around You, You gave orders to cross to the other shore. We see this same mentality of people coming in droves to see something new, something unusual. Announce a healing service and the church is packed to the rafters especially if the preacher is one who is famous. Sometimes our motives for seeking You may be suspect.
We are told of a scribe who approached You and asked to follow You. You did not extend an invitation to him, rather You said, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” Why Lord? Did You know the secret desires of his heart? Was he insincere? Were his motives in seeking You out and wanting to follow You wrong? In any case, it would seem that the scribe was deterred from doing so.
If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts. Ps 95:8
Genesis 18:16-33, Psalm 103:1-4, 8-11,
Matthew 8:18-22
Genesis 18:16-33
My Love, Beloved of my soul,
In today's passage from Scripture taken from Genesis, we see God's close relationship with Abraham. God has chosen Abraham to be the father of all nations and hence desires to share with him that He is about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because their sins cry out to heaven for justice.
When Abraham saw what God was about to do he was not indifferent but responded with empathy for the few good people who lived there. From him, we learn the power of intercession, our attitude in prayer, and persistence in prayer. The first thing Abraham does is to draw nearer to God as he pleads for the lives of the 50 innocent people who may be in those cities. When God agrees to spare their lives, he thinks perhaps there may the less than 50 and so continues to plead for the 45 and so on it goes. Afraid as he is he continues to plead for the innocent until he asks the Lord to be merciful to 10 who may be found to be just and God continues to hear his plea and grant his desire.
Then Abraham drew nearer to him and said:
Abraham spoke up again:
But Abraham persisted,
Then Abraham said, "Let not my Lord grow impatient if I go on.
Still Abraham went on,
"Please, let not my Lord grow angry if I speak up this last time. What if there are at least ten there?" He replied, "For the sake of those ten, I will not destroy it."
My most beloved Lord, grant me this grace as well, not to give up but to continue to pray with confidence, persistence, and perseverance not only for my own needs and for the needs of those I love, but for the whole world as well.
Psalm 103:1-4, 8-11
My Love, Beloved of my soul,
May I never forget the countless blessings You have showered on me all my life and may I never cease to praise You for all that You have done for me. I am aware that I am not as prompt as I ought to be in thanking and praising You as I ought to be. I know that I get so wrapped up in joy and excitement that it takes me a short while before I turn my gaze to You to bless and thank You for answering my prayers and granting my heart's desires.
Above all, Beloved, I desire to thank You for forgiveness of sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Thank You for forgetting all my transgressions and for granting me the grace and strength to sin no more in this powerful Sacrament of Grace.
Thank You, Beloved for Your graciousness in providing us with all we need to live holy, pure, and blameless lives in the Sacraments that are freely and always available to us in the Church.
Keep me safe Beloved for eternal life.
Matthew 8:18-22
My Love, Beloved of my soul,
Matthew tells us that when You saw the crowd around You, You gave orders to cross to the other shore. We see this same mentality of people coming in droves to see something new, something unusual. Announce a healing service and the church is packed to the rafters especially if the preacher is one who is famous. Sometimes our motives for seeking You may be suspect.
We are told of a scribe who approached You and asked to follow You. You did not extend an invitation to him, rather You said, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” Why Lord? Did You know the secret desires of his heart? Was he insincere? Were his motives in seeking You out and wanting to follow You wrong? In any case, it would seem that the scribe was deterred from doing so.
Another disciple to whom You extended the invitation to follow You responded with a classic excuse, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.” And to him, You said, “Follow me,and let the dead bury their dead.”
Once we say 'Yes' to the plan and will of God we must be clear and focused on doing only that which You desire us to do and nothing else.
Once we say 'Yes' to the plan and will of God we must be clear and focused on doing only that which You desire us to do and nothing else.
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