SATURDAY AFTER EPIPHANY SUNDAY - 2021

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS 

The people that lived in darkness
has seen a great light;
on those who dwell in the land and shadow of death
a light has dawned. MT4:16

1 JOHN 5:14-21

My Soul's Beloved,

The word of God assures us today that as children begotten by God we can always have this confidence, that You hear and answer every prayer. You grant us all we ask in accordance with You will. Being God who knows all we need even before we ask You will gladly give us all we need for our salvation. 

There is hope of forgiveness for all sinners except for those who refuse to give up deadly sins that kill the soul. As members of God's family, we are duty-bound to pray for one another and to help each other on the Way to the Kingdom. 

As this most joyous season in the liturgical year, Christmas, draws to a close we marvel once again at God's goodness in sending You into the world. You came to pay the ransom we owed for our deliverance from slavery to sin and death. It is one that we can never repay except by loving You as we ought and loving our brothers and sisters as we love ourselves.

Your whole life like Mary's was a sustained 'yes' to the Father's will. It is hard to conform our will to Yours in all things but when we do, we are truly God's children, and the life You came to give us is ours. Your Name alone will guard us against the Enemy. We are called by Your Name and we thank You for the power of Your Name that saves. 

PSALM 149:1-6,9

My Soul's Beloved,

The psalmist reminds us today that You delight in us. We are a ransomed people, a people delivered from the bonds of captivity and slavery to sin. We have been raised from the grave and we have received new life because You, Beloved, have redeemed and ransomed us by laying down Your life in exchange for ours. Truly, we are a people who are blessed because the Son of God who loves us is our King, our Lord, our God, and our Beloved.

Help us to keep our gaze on You always and to contemplate You and meditate on all You have done for us. To dwell on Your mind-boggling love is to exult the live-long day and rejoice. You are our salvation, You are the reason for the new song in our hearts. In You, we rejoice and are glad. The children of God are not despondent, anxious, worried, or afraid for we have the triune God as our Father, our Brother, and our Helper.

Heaven is made present on earth each time Your people gather in community to celebrate the Holy Eucharist. From the rising of the sun to its setting the Church and its people offer the Father the most fitting Sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving - the only Sacrifice of Calvary, that has the power to save the world. No matter how strenuously the world, the flesh, and the devil conspire to close our places of worship, they will not prevail for You have overcome the world.

JOHN 3:22-30

My Soul's Beloved,

Once You were baptized by John the Baptist, You had Your own band of disciples. Large crowds followed You as You began Your public ministry of teaching and preaching. You also baptized the people as John did. 

Envy and a mean spirit is part of our fallen nature as we can see from the reaction of John's disciples, who noting Your large following and growing popularity, reported to him, ‘Rabbi, the man who was with you on the far side of the Jordan, the man to whom you bore witness, is baptizing now; and everyone is going to him.’

Once again John reveals his greatness by his humility. He knows who he is, he knows God's purpose for his life, he knows his mission, and he is true to his calling to the end. He is the pre-cursor sent by God to prepare the way for the Messiah and once that happened he knew that it was time for him to step back and to move away. He rejoiced that his work was done and it was now time for Your mission to begin.  

‘A man can lay claim
only to what is given him from heaven.
‘You yourselves can bear me out: I said: I myself am not the Christ; I am the one who has been sent in front of him.'

Comparing Your salvific mission to a wedding feast he says, ‘The bride is only for the bridegroom.' The One that the world had so long waited for is finally here and seeing himself as the friend of the bridegroom who has made all the preparations for the wedding feast, rejoices at the sound of the voice of the Bridegroom. His work is done and he is satisfied. The bride belongs to the Bridegroom this is the reality, everything else fades away. 

Humility is the key to being a good, honest, honorable servant of God. Our whole life must be one of striving to grow smaller, to root out all selfishness and selfish desires, and to allow You to grow in us until there is no longer anything left of us there is only You.’