Category: Message of the Day

“Daniel, the Jewish exile, has paid no attention to you, O king, or to the decree you issued; three times a day he offers his prayer.” –Daniel 6:14 Three times a day, Daniel broke the law prohibiting praying to the true God. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we were repeatedly breaking the laws prohibiting prayer? There’s an unwritten law that you don’t pray openly on most jobs. Break the law. Many married couples have a strict law that each one should keep their faith and prayers private. Break the law. In our secular humanistic “culture of death,” it is not...

“Under the influence of the wine…” –Daniel 5:2 At this time of year, the world is obsessed with “Holiday” shopping events for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The Church, however, has a different focus. The liturgical year comes to a close this Saturday, and a new Church Year begins with Advent this Sunday. The Church focuses upon being prepared for the comings of Jesus at Christmas, at the hour of our death, and in His Second Coming. Tomorrow, in the USA, people celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving with feasting and the drinking of alcohol. Some of these gatherings will feature “drunken show”...

“The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall…break in pieces all these kingdoms and put an end to them, and it shall stand forever.” –Daniel 2:44 The vision Daniel interpreted has been the pattern of history (Dn 2:31ff). Great kingdom after great kingdom has been destroyed. Even the Temple and the city of God, Jerusalem, were destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. (Lk 21:6). Jesus prophesied that the fall of Jerusalem would be a prefigurement of the end of the world. “The present heavens and earth are reserved by God’s word for fire; they are kept...

“Test your servants.” –Daniel 1:12 The four young Israelite men asked their master to test their faith (Dn 1:12). Likewise, the poor widow in the Gospel reading asked God to test her faith by giving the Lord all her money (Lk 21:4). During the testing they gave God their all, trusted Him in the present moment, and placed their futures in His hands. Jesus teaches us that our heavenly Father’s plan is to provide on a “daily bread” basis (Mt 6:11). Many try to provide for a better tomorrow by storing up treasures, only to have that future plundered by...

“Anyone committed to the truth hears My voice.” –John 18:37 Decades ago, our young family gathered with several other young Catholic families and their small children in one family’s large log cabin. It was a pleasant party until I happened to notice the host and another young father sitting in a far corner pulling out a recreational drug. They pulled out a cigarette lighter and flicked it into flame. Immediately in my mind, the verse reverberated over and over: “My kingdom does not belong to this world” (Jn 18:36). I knew we had to live as subjects of Jesus the...