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The soul which has come into intimate contact with God in the silence of the prayer chamber is never out of conscious touch with the Father; the heart is always going out to Him in loving communion, and the moment the mind is released from the task upon which it is engaged, it returns as naturally to God as the bird does to its nest. What a beautiful conception of prayer we get if we regard
it in this light.
- E. M Bounds
(The fruit of a regular, ongoing, practice of prayer . . . )
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2 SM 5:1-7, 10; PS 89:20, 21-22, 25-26
MK 3:22-30
The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus,
"He is possessed by Beelzebul," and
"By the prince of demons he drives out demons."
Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables,
"How can Satan drive out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house is divided against itself,
that house will not be able to stand.
And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided,
he cannot stand;
that is the end of him.
But no one can enter a strong man's house to plunder his
property
unless he first ties up the strong man.
Then he can plunder his house.
Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies
that people utter will be forgiven them.
But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will never have forgiveness,
but is guilty of an everlasting sin."
For they had said, "He has an unclean spirit." USCCB lectionary
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Reflection on the Scripture |
"David seized his garments and rent them, and
all the men who were with him did likewise. They mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and his son Jonathan." —2 Samuel 1:11-12
David had experienced a very eventful week. Ziklag, the city in which David resided, had been "burned to the ground" by the Amalekites (1 Sm 30:3). The wives, sons, and daughters of David and his followers had been taken captive (1 Sm 30:3). "David found
himself in great difficulty, for the men spoke of stoning him, so bitter were they over the fate of their sons and daughters" (1 Sm 30:6). Nonetheless, David led his followers on an exhausting march in pursuit of the Amalekites (1 Sm 30:10). He overtook them, miraculously defeated them, and recovered everyone and everything (1 Sm 30:18-19).
After this series of traumatic events, a messenger informed David that King Saul and his son, Jonathan, had been killed in a battle against the Philistines. Naturally, David was preoccupied with his own concerns, and considering that Saul had tried to kill David on several occasions, you would think that David would get some satisfaction from Saul's death or at least be relieved by it. However, David mourned deeply not only for the death
of his friend Jonathan, but even for the death of his enemy, Saul (see 2 Sm 1:11ff). David's mourning was a miracle of unselfishness, which prefigured the unselfish, crucified, holy love Jesus has made possible for us to have in the new covenant. Be holy as Jesus is holy (1 Pt 1:16).
Prayer: Father, may I look to others' interests rather than my own (Phil 2:4).
Promise: "Rouse Your power, and come to save us." —Ps 80:3
Presentation Ministries
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What is Christian Love? - Reprinted from Freedom from Codependency, by Philip St. Romain - Dysfunctional Beliefs About Love -
part 1 of 5
In reflecting on the meaning of Christian love, it will be helpful to consider some common distortions about love. If these distortions become part of one’s value system, they can lead to codependent behaviors.
First, Christian love is not codependency. Christian love does not call for a giving of yourself that enables another to act irresponsibly, nor is it about impressing others or trying to get their approval. Christian love calls for a “laying down one’s life for one’s friends” that does not result in a negation of your giftedness and uniqueness.
Certain teachings commonly heard in Christian circles, however, can lead to an unhealthy giving of self in practice. Some of these teachings are listed below:
• "I am my neighbor’s keeper."
The codependent interprets this as meaning that we are responsible for one another’s feelings and happiness. A healthy understanding is that we are all interdependent and have the responsibility to help victims of injustice.
• "Love equals good works." The distortion is that only those who
do good works can be said to be loving. If, in addition, we define what those good works would be, then we would judge people according to whether or not they’re doing those works. Of course, it is possible to do good works and be empty or resentful inside. That is a further distortion of this Christian motto. Those who love WILL do good works, but not all good works are done in love.
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