TUESDAY OF WEEK 19 IN ORDINARY TIME - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Shoulder my yoke and learn from me,
says the Lord,
for I am gentle and humble in heart. MT 11:29

DEUTERONOMY 31:1-8

My Soul's Beloved,

How simple life would be if we trusted Your Word and God's assurances to be with us always, to go before us, to be behind us, to be at our right and left, above and below us, surrounding us always. We are fearful, stressed, anxious, distressed, sad, and discontented about everything precisely because we do not take You at Your Word.

Just as God went before His people in the wilderness as a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night, so too do You and Your Holy Spirit accompany us and abide in us. If only we were convinced of it in the very marrow of our being, nothing would be impossible for us. We would step out in faith and in Your Name, and by its mighty power we would be able to do anything.

Like the people in exile in the wilderness, we, too, who are in exile in the wilderness of the world, grumble, are discontented, are anxious, are filled with regret, wishing for what is not and failing to see all the good things we do have. You have assured us over and over again that You are the Good Shepherd who will never abandon us. You love greatly the weakest of us, the ones most sick, the frailest, the most vulnerable, and we ought to rejoice greatly that all we need to do is give the battle to You and rest serenely in Your love. Sadly, we do not; we prefer to stress and trust in ourselves, choosing to lead miserable, unhappy, unfulfilled lives and grumble endlessly, blaming You and everyone else for all that is wrong with us, just as the exiles in the wilderness did. 

Forgive us, Lord, and help us to love and trust You more each day.

Moses proceeded to address these words to the whole of Israel, ‘I am one hundred and twenty years old now, and can no longer come and go as I will. The Lord has said to me, “You shall not cross this Jordan.” It is the Lord your God who will cross it at your head to destroy these nations facing you and dispossess them; and Joshua too shall cross at your head, as the Lord has said. The Lord will treat them as he treated Sihon and Og the Amorite kings and their land, destroying them. The Lord will hand them over to you, and you will deal with them in exact accordance with the commandments I have enjoined on you. Be strong, stand firm, have no fear of them, no terror, for the Lord your God is going with you; he will not fail you or desert you.’
Then Moses summoned Joshua and in the presence of all Israel said to him, ‘Be strong, stand firm; you are going with this people into the land the Lord swore to their fathers he would give them; you are to give it into their possession. The Lord himself will lead you; he will be with you; he will not fail you or desert you. Have no fear, do not be disheartened by anything.’

DEUTERONOMY 32:3-4,7-9

The Lord’s portion was his people.

I proclaim the name of the Lord.
Oh, tell the greatness of our God!
He is the Rock, his work is perfect,
for all his ways are Equity.

Think back on the days of old,
think over the years, down the ages.
Ask of your father, let him teach you;
of your elders, let them enlighten you.

When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,
when he divided the sons of men,
he fixed their bounds according to the number of the sons of God;
but the Lord’s portion was his people,
Jacob his share of inheritance.

The Lord’s portion was his people.

MATTHEW 18:1-5,10,12-14

My Soul's Beloved,

It is so good and so consoling to know how tender and compassionate Your love is for us. If only we had greater faith in relying on You, leaning on You, trusting in Your strength, and not surrendering to our fears and anxieties, our weaknesses and frailties, how much happier we would be.  We are nothing, Lord, without You and Your help. But with You, we can lay claim to God as our Father, You as our Brother, Redeemer, Savior, Friend, and Spouse, and the Holy Spirit as our Helper, Sanctifier, and Paracleter. How rich we truly are, yet we live like beggars. We have at our command the infinite power and riches of heaven, yet we rely on our own puny efforts and fail miserably over and over again. 

You have given us the key to joy, serenity, contentment, and peace - all we need to do is become like little children and, like a weaned child, lie quiescent in Your arms, trusting You to provide all we need. Grant us wisdom, Beloved, to empty ourselves and to be filled with God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. No matter how many times I fall every day, how often I stray from the fold, I will never be so lost that You will not be able to seek me and find me and bring me home. Thank You, Lord.

The disciples came to Jesus and said, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ So he called a little child to him and set the child in front of them. Then he said, ‘I tell you solemnly, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And so, the one who makes himself as little as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
‘Anyone who welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.
‘See that you never despise any of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of my Father in heaven.
‘Tell me. Suppose a man has a hundred sheep and one of them strays; will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hillside and go in search of the stray? I tell you solemnly, if he finds it, it gives him more joy than do the ninety-nine that did not stray at all. Similarly, it is never the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.’