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A Christian is: a mind through which Christ thinks, a heart through which Christ loves, a voice through which Christ speaks, and a hand through which Christ helps.
- St. Augustine
(So may it go with this day for you.)
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1 Tm 1:1-2, 12-14; Psalm 16:1b-2a and 5, 7-8, 11
Lk 6:39-42
Jesus told his disciples a parable:
“Can a blind person guide a blind person?
Will not both fall into a pit?
No disciple is superior to the teacher;
but when fully trained,
every disciple will be like his teacher.
Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye,
but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’
when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.”
USCCB lectionary
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Reflection on the Scripture
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“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, Who has strengthened me, that He has made me His servant and judged me faithful.” —1 Timothy 1:12
No one is worthy to serve Almighty God. Yet He Who calls us to serve Him has judged us worthy (1 Tm 1:12). So, if God is for us, no one can be against us (Rm 8:31). We cannot be against ourselves either. We can no longer use the excuse that we are too weak, sinful, or limited to serve Him. Such a claim insults the power of God’s grace and His ability to choose His servants. In His unique wisdom, God delights in calling those who
are seemingly unqualified (1 Cor 1:26ff) and “of no standing” (Acts 4:13).
Servants of God, focus not on yourselves but on Jesus (Heb 3:1). “Whatever you do” for Him, “work at it with your whole being” (Col 3:23). “Do not grow slack but be fervent in spirit; He Whom you serve is the Lord” (Rm 12:11).
Prayer: Father, You choose me to be Your servant! (Jn 15:16) I give You my life. May I bear much fruit for You.
Promise: “You will show me the path to life, fullness of joys in Your presence, the delights at Your right hand forever.” —Ps 16:11
Presentation Ministries
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Growing in Inner Freedom: A Guide for Today
- by Philip St. Romain. Liguori Publ., 1986.
7. Live by Faith, Not Feelings
The just person shall live by faith (Romans 1:17)
Once a non-Christian friend said to me, “Faith, faith, faith! That’s all you Christians talk about! Why don’t you talk about knowledge and reality instead?”
The implication in such statements is, of course, that a person of religious faith must somehow sacrifice intelligence and common sense in favor of a batch of supernatural mumbo-jumbo. No doubt the devil loves this misunderstanding.
The truth is that it would be impossible for us to live without faith. We have faith that the people who prepare our food will not poison us, that motorists will stay on their side of the road, and that dentists know what they are doing when they pull our teeth. These kinds of faith are very much like trust, which is different from the knowledge and certainty of scientific convictions.
Thus we see that life would be impossible without faith. As Aldous Huxley put it, ‘Faith is a precondition of all systematic knowing.
Societies are held together. . . by a widespread faith in the other fellow’s decency.” When such a faith breaks down, societies crumble.
Religious faith is by far the most important kind, for without it our natural human faiths are difficult to sustain. Living by faith means that we trust that life is meaningful—that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love him (Rm. 8, 28). Faith also means that we live as though we are loved and desired by God, even when our life experiences seem to fly in the face of this conviction. No matter what anyone says, we hold fast to our conviction that
nothing can separate us from the love of God (see Romans 8:35-39).
Faith as conviction and life-stance means that we do not always have to feel the confirmation of our beliefs. There are those beautiful times when God does let us feel something of joy and bliss, but we should not evaluate our closeness to God in terms of feelings. God is as close to us when we are dry and cranky as when we are filled with charitable exuberance. The surest sign of God’s presence in our lives is our willingness to love everyone and everything. Exuberance
is often as great a hindrance to loving as desolation.
So we should probably worry less about how we’re doing spiritually; that’s God’s business. God wants our salvation far more than we do. Our task is to surrender ourselves to God completely; then we must strive to love and learn every moment of every day. We will not succeed completely, of course, but he will never desert us. Simply persisting in the struggle is our most authentic expression of faith.
Suggested Practices
- Whenever you begin to feel as though God is not with you, tell yourself that God is as present within you now as when you felt this most intensely in the past.
- Do you live your life as though God is real? If you had more faith, how would your life be different? Resolve to start living this new life today.
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