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We seldom realize fully that we are sent to fulfill God-given tasks. We act as if we were simply dropped down in creation and have to decide to entertain ourselves until we die. But we were sent into the world by God, just as Jesus was.
Once we start living our lives with that conviction, we will soon know what we were sent to do.
- Henri J. M. Nouwen
(What "God-given tasks" are entrusted to you this day?
Pray the grace to do them lovingly.) |
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TB 11:5-17; PS 146:1B-2, 6-10; JN 14:23
R. Praise the Lord, my soul! . Praise the LORD, O my soul; I will
praise the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God while I live.
The LORD keeps faith forever, secures justice for the
oppressed, gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets captives free.
The LORD gives sight to the blind. The LORD raises up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the just. The LORD protects strangers.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains, but the way of the wicked he thwarts The LORD shall reign forever, your God, O Zion, through all generations!
Alleluia.
USCCB Lectionary
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Jesus claimed a sovereignty that only God can claim - a sovereignty that extends not only to the ends of the earth but to the heavens as well. But the way Jesus would establish his
kingdom was far different from any of the expectations of the tiny nation of Israel. Jesus came to rule hearts and minds, not lands and entitlements. He came to free people from the worst tyranny possible - slavery to sin, Satan, and a world ruled by greed and lust for power and wealth.
Paul the Apostle states that
no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3). It is the role of the Holy Spirit to make the Lord Jesus present and known in our lives. We can accept the Lord Jesus or reject him, love him or ignore him. He will not force his rule upon us. But the consequences of our choice will not only shape our present life but our destiny as well. What does it mean to acknowledge that Jesus is Lord? The word lord means ruler or king - the one who is owed fealty and submission.
The Lord and Master of our lives is the person or thing we give our lives over to and submit to in a full way. We can be ruled by many things - our possessions, the love of money, our unruly passions, alcohol, drugs, and other forms of addictions. Only one Lord and Master can truly set us free to love and serve others selflessly and to be loved as God intended from the beginning. When we acknowledge that Jesus is Lord we invite him to be the king of our heart, master of our home, our thoughts,
our relationships, and everything we do. Is the Lord Jesus the true king and master of your heart and do you give him free reign in every area of your life?
"Lord Jesus, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of David and the Son of God. You are my Lord and I willingly submit myself to your rule in my life.
Be Lord and King of my life, my thoughts, heart, home, relationships, work, and all that I do."
DailyScripture.net
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The Way of Perfection, by Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
Treats of our great need that the Lord should give us what we ask in these words of the Paternoster: "Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie."
I have been reflecting how in this petition alone the same words are repeated: first of all the Lord speaks of "our daily bread" and asks Thee to give it, and then He says: "Give it us to-day, Lord." He lays the matter before His Father in this way: the Father gave us His Son once and for all to die for us, and thus He is our own; yet He does not want the gift to be taken from us until the
end of the world but would have it left to be a help to us every day. Let this melt your hearts, my daughters, and make you love your Spouse, for there is no slave who would willingly call himself by that name, yet the good Jesus seems to think it an honour.
O Eternal Father, how great is the merit of this humility!
With what a treasure are we purchasing Thy Son! How to sell Him we already know, for He was sold for thirty pieces of silver; but, if we would purchase Him, no price is sufficient. Being made one with us through the portion of our nature which is His, and being Lord of His own will, He reminds His Father that, as our nature is His, He is able to give it to us, and thus He says "our bread". He makes no difference between Himself and us, though we make one between ourselves and Him through not
giving ourselves daily for His Majesty's sake. - Chapter 33
(Keep in mind that she is writing to sisters in a cloistered contemplative order.) Paperback (Kindle edition available)
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