Message of 2-21-24

Published: Wed, 02/21/24

A Daily Spiritual Seed
Wednesday: February 21, 2024

Message of the Day

You will find something more in woods than in books. Trees and stones will teach you that which you can never learn from masters.

- St. Bernard

(We need both, of course. Which would do you more good at this time?)

Lenten Resource: A Season for Change: Praying the Gospels of Lent, by Philip St. Romain. Paperback, PDF, ePub, Kindle.

Readings of the Day

Jon 3:1-10; PS 51:3-4, 12-13, 18-19

Lk 11:29-32

While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them,
“This generation is an evil generation;
it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it,
except the sign of Jonah.
Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites,
so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
At the judgment
the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation
and she will condemn them,
because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon,
and there is something greater than Solomon here.
At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation
and condemn it,
because at the preaching of Jonah they repented,
and there is something greater than Jonah here.”

USCCB lectionary

Reflection on the Scripture

“Return to Me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning.” “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed.” —Jonah 3:4

To create our culture of death, many people have sinned repeatedly and grievously for many years. The culture of death will eventually self-destruct. But how long will it be? Are there only forty days more before the end? (see Jon 3:4) Are we on our last year? (Lk 13:8-9) Some believe that it’s too late to avert mass destruction. When people thought this in the past, the prophet Joel proclaimed that “even now” God’s people could repent with prayer and fasting (Jl 2:12). In Joel’s time, it was almost too late, but there were still a few moments left to repent. We are still in the season of mercy, but the season of judgment is coming soon (and possibly very soon). “The Judge stands at the gate” (Jas 5:9).

We don’t know how much time we have left to repent. Consequently, the only wise thing to do is to repent now. “Now is the acceptable time! Now is the day of salvation!” (2 Cor 6:2) Go to Confession at the nearest opportunity. Fast and pray in the Holy Spirit to prepare for life-changing Lenten Confessions. Go to Confession as if this were your last Confession. Live this Lenten day as if it were your last Lent and your last day.

Prayer: Father, may I repent more deeply today than I ever have before.

Promise: “For at the preaching of Jonah they reformed, but you have a greater than Jonah here.” —Lk 11:32

Presentation Ministries

Amazon Gift Cards: Good for any occasion.

Spiritual Reading

Readings from Jesus Alive in Our Lives, by Philip St. Romain. Ave Maria Press, 1985. Contemplative Ministries, Inc. 2011.

Part Three, Gift of the Spirit

Chapter 2: Jesus' Teachings on the Holy Spirit

- Selected quotes

Fourth Teaching: Jn. 16:7-8
The Spirit will . . .

- Prove the world wrong about sin

- Prove the world wrong about righteousness

- Prove the world wrong about judgment

A. Wrong about sin. Here we see the contrast between the Spirit of Truth and the spirit of the world, which rationalizes sin and has enculturated sinful practices in many ways. The entire thrust of the Spirit is diametrically opposed to the ways of sin and exposes such whenever it comes upon them. Believers will notice this direction in their own hearts as they feel an aversion to sinful ways.

B. Wrong about righteousness. It is the Spirit who makes us righteous and transforms us into likenesses of Christ. The world, here, refers to those cultural traditions that promise happiness and success, but which turn out to be empty promises. The Spirit sees where things come from and where they go and warns us against pursuing false pathways to happiness.

C. Wrong about judgment. God does not judge as the world does, but sees the heart of an individual. Sometimes what the world sees on the outside, the Spirit, viewing the inside, sees as perversion. Sometimes the opposite is true as well—what the world deems worthless, the Spirit considers priceless. This is especially true of a heart that is humble and open to the Spirit’s guidance.

How do you experience the Spirit in you, providing guidance about the harmful ways of the world? What aspects of the culture does the Spirit move you to value?

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