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27 July 2014
The Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Matthew 13:44-52)
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure.” These words of our Lord referring to a treasure chest dug up in a field allow us to reflect on what we consider our treasures to be. The law of the Lord means more than large quantities of silver and gold, today’s psalmist claims. If we are striving to live in a way that will get us into heaven, then God’s law is certainly a big help. Indeed, whatever assists us in the struggle should be considered a priceless treasure, even when, on an earthly level, it may appear like something to be avoided.
St. Faustina held Jesus as her only treasure, and so she understood the value of enduring all things for Him. She wrote: “Sufferings, adversities, humiliations, failures and suspicions that have come my way are splinters that keep alive the fire of my love for You, O Jesus. (,,,) I want never to be rewarded for my efforts and my good actions. You yourself, Jesus, are my only reward; You are enough, O Treasure of my heart! I want to share compassionately in the sufferings of my neighbours and to conceal my own sufferings, not only from them, but also from You, Jesus. Suffering is a great grace; through suffering the soul becomes like the Saviour; in suffering love becomes crystallized; the greater the suffering, the purer the love” (Diary 57).
Prayer: MercifulMerciful Lord Jesus, I want You as my only Treasure. I ask You to give me the grace to cherish Your commands and to follow all of them with love. You may not ever call me to become like You through suffering, but allow me anyway, to become like You in love. Amen.
20 July 2014
The Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Matthew 13:24-43)
Today’s Gospel is about the kingdom of heaven, and what it’s like. Jesus compares it to a good seed that grew up among weeds; to a grain of mustard seed that grew from the tiniest seed into a huge tree; like leaven which made a whole batch of dough rise.
Speaking as He does in parables, Jesus gives food for thought, although doesn’t reveal the whole meaning of His kingdom. His kingdom is present in every place that heaven is being experienced here on earth. Where people are serving others in selfless love, there is God’s kingdom. Where enemies are being reconciled with each other, there is God’s kingdom. Where the Gospel is being preached and people are coming to know the Lord and experiencing His mercy, there is God’s kingdom. Jesus told St. Faustina: “The very inner depths of My being are filled to overflowing with mercy, and it is being poured out upon all I have created. My delight is to act in a human soul and to fill it with My mercy and to justify it. My kingdom on earth is My life in the human soul” (Diary 1784).
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, You are good and forgiving, and so I am not scared to ask for Your mercy. May Your kingdom come in my heart and soul. I want to experience heaven in my relationship with You already here on earth. Thank You, Lord Jesus! Amen.
13 July 2014
The Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Matthew 13:1-23)
In this Sunday’s Gospel we hear Jesus’ words: “Blessed are your eyes, for they see.” By this, Jesus means we are blessed when we see things the way they are. A big part of seeing things the way they are is seeing ourselves as the sinners we truly are: sinners, yet redeemed and precious in the eyes of God.
This immense love God has for each one of us needs to motivate us to uproot the sin from our lives. Turning with trust to the merciful Lord for healing will help us to root out our sins. St. Faustina wrote: “I know very well what I am of myself, because for this purpose Jesus has opened the eyes of my soul; I am an abyss of misery, and hence I understand that whatever good there is in my soul consists solely of His holy grace. The knowledge of my own misery allows me, at the same time, to know the immensity of Your mercy. In my own interior life, I am looking with one eye at the abyss of my misery and baseness, and with the other, at the abyss of Your mercy, O God” (Diary 56).
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, help me to see myself in the truth, warts and all. Sinner though I am, You love me. I am sorry for all my sins. Purify my heart of all pride and vanity that I may bear good fruit for Your Kingdom. I trust in You! Amen.
6 July 2014
The Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Matthew 11:25-30)
This week’s Gospel shows us Jesus, meek and humble of heart, spontaneously praising the Father for having revealed His secrets to the simple. Those who are learned and sophisticated end up missing out. Riding on their high horse, as far as they are concerned, they already to know everything that’s worth knowing. Jesus, on the other hand, although He is King, doesn’t consider Himself above riding on a donkey--today's First Reading reminds us. He isn’t out to impress anyone. And He rejoices that there are simple souls who want to learn the mysteries of the Kingdom.
St. Faustina was one such soul. She was humble, and was so totally dependent on Jesus that He even chose to appear to her, often appearing scorned and humiliated, as He was treated during His Passion. In one place Faustina wrote: “The Lord Jesus appeared as He was during the scourging. (...) He said to me: ‘Fix your eyes upon Me and live according to what you see. I desire that you penetrate into My spirit more deeply and understand that I am meek and humble of heart’” (Diary 526).
Prayer: Merciful Lord Jesus, meek and humble of heart, form my poor heart after the model of Your Sacred Heart. Teach me genuine humility and meekness. I trust in You! Amen.