†Let us make up for lost time. Let us give to God the time that remains to us. ▪ St. Alphonsus Liguori
Today's Meditation“Suppress Interior Noise – God created your soul silent and keeps it inviolate at baptism. He filled it with Himself, nothing other than Himself. It is later, little by little that the world bursts in. Noise invades, covering the soft voice of God. Since then, the racket amplifies itself. Return to your baptismal silence, my brother! Noise has three generators: memories, curiosity, and worries. Paralyze their action.” — An Anonymous Carthusian Monk
Daily Verse †I, then, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace. ▪ Ephesians 4:1-3
|
EWTN Daily Saint
|
|
St. WenceslausPatron Saint of: Czech Republic, brewers, and political leaders
Feast Day: September 28 St. Wenceslaus (907–935 A.D.) was the son of the Duke of Bohemia. His grandfather was converted to Christianity by the missionaries Sts. Cyril and Methodius. His mother, Dragomir, was the daughter of a pagan tribal chief who was baptized at her marriage. After the death of his father, Wenceslaus received a Christian upbringing from his grandmother, St. Ludmila, while his mother reverted to her pagan ways. Dragomir reigned as regent, had St. Ludmila killed, and worked to oppose the spread of Christianity in Bohemia. When St. Wenceslaus was 18 he took control of the government and exiled his mother. St. Wenceslaus was described as a pious, humble, and intelligent ruler who worked to established Christianity in the land that would become part of the Holy Roman Empire. He was known for his vow of virginity, his many virtues, and his life of prayer and good works. After a political dispute arose, his mother and his younger brother, called Boleslaus the Cruel, plotted his murder along with a group of disaffected nobles. Boleslaus invited his brother to celebrate the feast of Sts. Cosmas and Damian, and arranged to have him assassinated on his way to Mass. St. Wenceslaus muttered words of forgiveness as he died, and his body was buried at the murder site. His brother succeeded him as Duke of Bohemia. Three years later Boleslaus repented of his crime, and had his brother’s remains transferred to the Church of St. Vitus in Prague. Wenceslaus was considered a saint by the people at the time of his death. His feast day is September 28th.
|
Monday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary TimeLectionary: 455 Reading 1Job 1:6-22 One day, when the angels of God came to present themselves before the LORD,
Satan also came among them.
And the LORD said to Satan, "Whence do you come?"
Then Satan answered the LORD and said,
"From roaming the earth and patrolling it."
And the LORD said to Satan, "Have you noticed my servant Job,
and that there is no one on earth like him,
blameless and upright, fearing God and avoiding evil?"
But Satan answered the LORD and said,
"Is it for nothing that Job is God-fearing?
Have you not surrounded him and his family
and all that he has with your protection?
You have blessed the work of his hands,
and his livestock are spread over the land.
But now put forth your hand and touch anything that he has,
and surely he will blaspheme you to your face."
And the LORD said to Satan,
"Behold, all that he has is in your power;
only do not lay a hand upon his person."
So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD. And so one day, while his sons and his daughters
were eating and drinking wine
in the house of their eldest brother,
a messenger came to Job and said,
"The oxen were ploughing and the asses grazing beside them,
and the Sabeans carried them off in a raid.
They put the herdsmen to the sword,
and I alone have escaped to tell you."
While he was yet speaking, another came and said,
"Lightning has fallen from heaven
and struck the sheep and their shepherds and consumed them;
and I alone have escaped to tell you."
While he was yet speaking, another messenger came and said,
"The Chaldeans formed three columns,
seized the camels, carried them off,
and put those tending them to the sword,
and I alone have escaped to tell you."
While he was yet speaking, another came and said,
"Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine
in the house of their eldest brother,
when suddenly a great wind came across the desert
and smote the four corners of the house.
It fell upon the young people and they are dead;
and I alone have escaped to tell you."
Then Job began to tear his cloak and cut off his hair.
He cast himself prostrate upon the ground, and said, "Naked I came forth from my mother's womb,
and naked shall I go back again.
The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;
blessed be the name of the LORD!" In all this Job did not sin,
nor did he say anything disrespectful of God. Responsorial PsalmPsalm 17:1bcd, 2-3, 6-7 R. (6) Incline your ear to me and hear my word.
Hear, O LORD, a just suit;
attend to my outcry;
hearken to my prayer from lips without deceit.
R. Incline your ear to me and hear my word.
From you let my judgment come;
your eyes behold what is right.
Though you test my heart, searching it in the night,
though you try me with fire, you shall find no malice in me.
R. Incline your ear to me and hear my word.
I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;
incline your ear to me; hear my word.
Show your wondrous mercies,
O savior of those who flee
from their foes to refuge at your right hand.
R. Incline your ear to me and hear my word. AlleluiaMark 10:45 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Son of Man came to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. GospelLuke 9:46-50 An argument arose among the disciples
about which of them was the greatest.
Jesus realized the intention of their hearts and took a child
and placed it by his side and said to them,
"Whoever receives this child in my name receives me,
and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.
For the one who is least among all of you
is the one who is the greatest." Then John said in reply,
"Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name
and we tried to prevent him
because he does not follow in our company."
Jesus said to him,
"Do not prevent him, for whoever is not against you is for you."
|
Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ!
|
From Word Among Us WAU.org
|
Daily Meditation: Luke 9:46-50The one who is least among all of you is the one who is the greatest. (Luke 9:48) What a contrast today’s readings offer us! On the surface, they seem very different. The first is about Job’s miseries, and the Gospel is about Jesus’ arguing apostles. But both readings focus on the impermanent nature of worldly possessions and prestige. Let’s start with Job. He was considered a great man in his community. He had many sons and daughters and thousands of livestock. But in a series of wrenching catastrophes, he lost everything in rapid succession. Job reacted, as any of us would, with deep anguish. But he was also keenly aware that the blessings he enjoyed were fleeting: “Naked I came forth from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I go back again. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away” (Job 1:21). He knew that whether he was wealthy or poor, surrounded by a loving family or all alone, he, as well as everything he owned, belonged to the Lord. By contrast, the apostles in the Gospel are searching for a kind of worldly greatness similar to what Job had before his trials. They weren’t searching for a comfortable life with lots of land and abundant resources, but they wanted the kind of prestige that Job enjoyed. And knowing how human prestige works, they knew that they had to compete against each other for it. There could be only one winner—and eleven losers. To be fair, the apostles followed Jesus for more than just attention. They loved him and were sincerely trying to live out his teachings. But they still didn’t grasp one of his most important teachings. So Jesus had a child stand beside him while he said, “The one who is least among all of you is the one who is the greatest” (Luke 9:48). Greatness in the kingdom of God is not about the number of our possessions or our reputation. It’s about having the humility, detachment, and simplicity of a child. It’s about becoming like Jesus, whose greatest joy was to do his Father’s will. Remember, God doesn’t judge you the same way the world does. His model for greatness is his Son, who didn’t grasp for greatness but who humbly gave up his life. May we all strive to become the “least”! “Jesus, show me the way to a truly ‘great’ life!” Job 1:6-22
Psalm 17:1-3, 6-7
|
Reflections with Brother Adrian:
|
Click To Hear 2 Cents Audio
|
From today's Holy Gospel: ""Whoever receives this child in my name receives me,
and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.
For the one who is least among all of you
is the one who is the greatest.”
|
From Roberto Juarez: "….This Gospel also has a very concrete application to our Christian communities. In a parish, in a group, in a community, even in a family, we can ask ourselves: Do we seek to serve or do we seek protagonism? Because even good things can be contaminated when we begin to think: "Without me this would not work". "I do it better than others". "That ministry should be mine". "Why have you chosen someone else?". The Gospel reminds us that the Church does not need protagonists who seek recognition; she needs disciples who want to serve. Each one has a gift, a mission. But we are all called to put our gifts at the service of Christ and of our brothers and sisters.
Perhaps today we can take away two questions from the Gospel: Do I seek to be more than others or do I seek to serve them? And am I happy when good is done by someone who does not belong to my group, or do I need everything to happen through me? Let us ask the Lord to make us small like that child he placed in the midst of the disciples. Small to receive, humble to serve, open to recognize the good and generous to collaborate with all those who work for the Kingdom. Because, in the end, true greatness is not in being above others, it is in being next to others like Jesus." end quote.
I'm involved in several ways of evangelization. Prison, hospital setting nursing home, teaching youth, teaching adults, helping men's conferences and retreats and more. And as I reflect on our Lord's words today, I am thinking about God's children. And in every ministry, I see God's children. Even the elderly, I see a face…a child looking for its father, in prison, a child lost without its father, and in classes someone trying to make their way to the father. And what if I told you that the father is in the will? What if I told you that the way comes by faith? What if I said that we must first do all these things…for the completion to be fulfilled? Only after we work on the order, the directives of a mission, or even a meal, only in the end will you see it have come together.
I prayed the other day, thinking of how many things are going wrong in everything I am involved in. I prayed alone, looking outside the blinds at a window at work, feeling like a prisoner of problems. And our Lord seemed to speak, our Father, saying "I work with these imperfections to do My will". And then, I was given a strength, one more day, one more stroke, for He gives us enough, He provides, He will not give more than we can handle, so long as we are with Him. But there is a hidden element here. The tenacity to persevere, this strength comes through an emptying of self "Lord, I need you", a humility of Job in the bible, a humble soul like Mother Mary, and great Saint Joseph, known more for his works, than his words. And through all of this…the Savior enters.
Such is the message of our Lord today. "Let the children come to me". Let yourself be a child. Yes. And let the children come to the Father.
LET THEM. Guide them. Some, are extremely hard to deal with and to bring to the Lord. Pray for them. And see, YOUR heart change…not necessarily their heart. Watch what happens when you can walk by His hand, as He shows you the way…to live….and to love.
The world will completely change….yes…your world and the souls you touch, with Christ inside….
|
Click for Audio
|
Random Bible Verse 1
Isaiah 40:30–31 [Isaiah 40] 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
Word of the Lord!
|
Month of Our Lady of Sorrows (Mater Dolorosa)
Devotion of the Month Opening prayer of Novena to Our Lady of Sorrows: O, Mother most holy and sorrowful, Queen of Martyrs, you who stood by your Son as He agonized on the cross; by the sufferings of your life, by that sword of pain that pierced your heart, by your perfect joy in heaven, look down on me kindly as I kneel before you, sympathizing with your sorrows and offering you my petition with childlike trust. Dear Mother, since your Son refuses you nothing, ask of His Sacred Heart to mercifully grant what I ask, through the merits of His sacred passion, along with those of your sufferings at the foot of the cross. Mother most merciful, to whom shall I go in my misery if not to you who pities us poor, sinful exiles in this valley of tears? In our name, offer Jesus but one drop of His most precious blood, but one pang of His loving heart. Remind Him that you are our sweetness, our life, and our hope, and your prayer will be heard. Amen.
|
If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace
|
|
|
