Memorial of Saint Agnes, virgin and martyr

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS


May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
enlighten the eyes of our hearts,
that we may know what is the hope
that belongs to our call. Eph 1:17-18


1 SAMUEL 16:1-13
PSALM 89:20-22, 27-28
MARK 2:23-28



1 SAMUEL 16:1-13


My Beloved, Soul of my soul,

Often we are like Samuel we grieve for the loss of things that only immobilize us, it keeps us stuck in the past when God wants to do wonderful new things in us and for us. We must be ready always to go where the Spirit leads only then can we reach the heights that You desire for us. It is not always easy when we say no to the world and set our face just as You did towards Jerusalem.

Just as God chose Saul and then David to be king so too does God choose us to be Your disciples. Jesse had many sons and in the eyes of Samuel, all of them seemed to fit in appearance his idea of what a king ought to be. But God's choice was the unlikely youngest son, David, who proved to be the best king Israel ever had.

We must train ourselves to see not as man sees but as God sees. We get caught up in the physical, in appearances, but God's way is different. He looks at the heart and knows all that lies there.

When David was anointed he was filled with the Spirit. In the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, we too are anointed and filled with the Spirit. Once we have received this Gift of gifts it is up to us to yield to Him and to obey His promptings. When we do we will live a life of grace.


PSALM 89:20-22, 27-28

My Beloved, Soul of my soul,

David was only a foreshadow of the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Ruler, and Savior of the world. The verses of this psalm were written about David but they truly are a description of You.


“On a champion I have placed a crown;
over the people I have set a youth.”

“I have found David, my servant;
with my holy oil I have anointed him,
That my hand may be always with him,
and that my arm may make him strong.”

“He shall say of me, ‘You are my father,
my God, the Rock, my savior.’
And I will make him the first-born,
highest of the kings of the earth.”


MARK 2:23-28

My Beloved, Soul of my soul,

We are living in a time of complete and utter insanity. People are prepared to do violence to those who refuse to bow down to their diktats. Political correctness is taken to the level of absurdity but the vast majority of people are blind like the Pharisees and refuse to see.  

There are people who spend a lifetime nitpicking about stupid, irrelevant things whereas we were created for the sublime. To love as You love, to have tenderness and compassion for all especially those of us who are the weakest, the frailest, the most vulnerable, to be prepared to lay down one's life for the good of the other, this is what it means to be alive and be filled by the Spirit of God. 

We ought never to forget that true love transcends all:

“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

Memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Religious

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets:
in these last days, he has spoken to us through the Son. Heb 1:1-2

1 JOHN 3:7-10
PSALM 98:1, 7-9
JOHN 1:35-42


1 JOHN 3:7-10

My Beloved, Soul of my soul,

Your Word is clear, all those who are of God will strive to be holy just as the Father is holy. If I am a child of God, and I am, then I must pray constantly especially when I am tempted to sin. All sin is of the devil and You, have destroyed the works of the Enemy. I am triumphant in Your triumph. I am victorious in Your victory over the flesh, the world, and the devil. As a member of the family of God, I am called to love God always, first and above all else and I am called to love my neighbor as myself. Thank You for providing all the grace I need each day to follow You.


PSALM 98:1, 7-9

My Beloved, Soul of my soul,

We are happiest when we know who God is and who we are as His children and live in the knowledge that we belong to Him.

All that God has created has His imprint on it and this is why everything in nature gives glory to Him. The beauty, the majesty, the power, the serenity, the simplicity, the intricacies and complexity of nature, all give glory to the Creator. And we whom the Lord God has fashioned after His image and in His likeness must give Him glory with every breath we breathe. 

Thank You, Beloved for all that You have done for me according to the will of the Father in heaven. Thank You for Your saving love. Thank You for being Emmanuel, God with me. Keep me faithful to the end. Amen.


JOHN 1:35-42

My Beloved, Soul of my soul,

Once You have been pointed out to us as the Lamb of God, the Messiah, the One whom the Father sent to take away the sins of the world, then, like the disciples of John, we are called to follow You.

You turned to the two disciples and asked, "What are you looking for?" As Your disciples, we must know what it is that we seek, we must know our purpose in following You. To follow You is to embrace You wholeheartedly. There is no easy way to follow You for You have said, the way is narrow and hard that leads to the Kingdom of God and few choose it. But those who do receive all the help and grace they will need every step of the way.

Every disciple was chosen in union with the Father. The first two were John and Andrew the third was Simon whose name You changed to Cephas, Peter, the rock upon which You would build Your Church; one, holy, catholic and apostolic against which the very gates of hell cannot prevail.