Category: Prayers

“But those sown on good soil are the ones who listen to the word, take it to heart, and yield at thirty- and sixty- and a hundredfold.” –Mark 4:20 Jesus tells the crowds about the fruitfulness of good soil and the reasons why soil does not bear fruit. He also gives advice on how to turn unproductive soil into fruitful ground. Jesus can soften the hardest, rockiest ground, as He did with St. Paul. But we are God’s coworkers, and Jesus plans to use us to till the ground and care for it (see Gn 2:15). This includes the care...

“For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God bestowed when my hands were laid on you.” –2 Timothy 1:6 How well do you know your Catholic ancestry? Do you realize Timothy and Titus were ordained bishops? (see 2 Tm 1:6) By the laying on of hands, the Apostle Paul commissioned them for evangelistic work. “As for Titus, he is my companion and fellow worker in your behalf” (2 Cor 8:23). This illustrates New Testament-era apostolic succession. Paul also assigned a precise mission. “My purpose in leaving you in Crete was that you might accomplish...

“Before all men you are to be His witness to what you have seen and heard.” –Acts 22:15 The conversion of Paul is repeated three times at considerable length in the Acts of the Apostles (see Acts 9:1-22; Acts 22:1-21; Acts 26:1-23). This threefold repetition indicates how critical it is for people to hear about God bringing someone to conversion. Listen to Paul’s witness: “I once thought it my duty to oppose the name of Jesus the Nazorean in every way possible…I sent many of God’s holy people to prison. When they were to be put to death I cast...

“Jonah began…announcing, ‘Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,’ when the people of Nineveh believed God.” –Jonah 3:4-5 At Mass this morning, the gentleman seated directly in front of me paid no attention whatsoever to the homily. He was fidgeting in his seat, looking to the right and left as the pastor told several anecdotes related to today’s readings. Halfway through the homily, the pastor quoted from memory Jesus’ words in Matthew 25:35-45. At the very instant the pastor quoted the first word of the Scripture passage, this man’s head literally whipped around ninety degrees, and he stared intently...