THURSDAY OF WEEK 25 IN ORDINARY TIME - 2023

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me. JN 14:16

HAGGAI 1:1-8 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Today we are reminded that we cannot expect anything to go well with us, there can be no blessings, if we do not get our priorities right. The Word of God is clear - we are commanded to love God with our whole heart, all our strength and might, with our whole being, with every breath we breathe and this love that we have for You must be the catalyst that drives us to do all things for the glory of God.

Unless You O Lord, our Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are given the glory, honor, worship, and praise that is due to our Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier we can be certain that nothing we achieve in this temporal world will prosper.

Grant us the wisdom O Lord to never cease giving You praise with every breath we breathe until that glorious day when we will come to You and remain with You in the Kingdom of God forever. 

PSALM 149:1-6,9 ©

Sing a new song to the Lord,
his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel rejoice in its Maker,
let Zion’s sons exult in their king.

Let them praise his name with dancing
and make music with timbrel and harp.
For the Lord takes delight in his people.
He crowns the poor with salvation.

Let the faithful rejoice in their glory,
shout for joy and take their rest.
Let the praise of God be on their lips:
this honour is for all his faithful.

The Lord takes delight in his people.

LUKE 9:7-9 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

What good does it do anyone to hear about You, to see lives transformed by You, to hear testimonies of the marvels that You have worked in the lives of those who joyfully testify to Your love and Your power to heal and to forgive. To transform and to set free from every sin and bondage. From every illness both physical and spiritual. 

Herod the tetrarch is a perfect example of those who like their ears tickled but are not interested in accepting the truth and allowing it to transform their lives. The whole country was abuzz with the great signs and miracles that You performed. Everywhere You went people marveled at Your teaching and preaching for they had never heard anyone speak as You did. You taught and You spoke with authority and lives were transformed. But those like Herod are titillated momentarily and once the feeling has passed they lapse into indifference.

Although Herod liked listening to John the Baptist in prison perhaps because he stirred his almost-dead conscience, he had no qualms about beheading him to save face. Now, hearing about You and all the marvelous deeds You performed wherever You went, his interest went only so far as to wonder who You were and to a desire to see You. He took no concrete steps to go any further than the mild interest he felt in seeing You.

Beloved Jesus, so many of us like Herod hear of You and are stirred momentarily but we have no interest in committing our lives to You and accepting You as our Lord and Master.

Have mercy on us O Lord, and on the whole world. By the power of the Love of the Father for His wayward children grant that all sinners open their hearts and minds to the truth and the life of the Gospel.