Category: Daily Prayer

“The result is that the last state of the man is worse than the first.” –Luke 11:26 Mass Readings: October 7 First: Acts 1:12-14; Resp: Luke 1:46-55; Gospel: Luke 1:26-38 The man in today’s parable was delivered from evil spirits, but then did nothing more. He was a spiritual sitting duck for Satan, and wound up in worse shape than he was before he was delivered (Lk 11:26). He was like a gardener who pulls up all the weeds from his garden, but then doesn’t plant any crops. Naturally, the weeds will grow right back. Jesus is teaching us that...

“How could you be so stupid?” –Galatians 3:3 Mass Readings: October 6 First: Galatians 3:1-5; Resp: Luke 1:69-75; Gospel: Luke 11:5-13 “Hey, Galatians,” St. Paul shouts, “wake up! You heard me preach that Jesus saved you by His death and Resurrection. You accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, and received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Then, after I left town, you listened to false preachers, set Jesus aside, and tried to get right with God on your own. How could you be so stupid?” (see Gal 3:1-5) No doubt the Galatians were stunned by Paul’s charges. The fact that...

“Lord, teach us to pray.” –Luke 11:1 Mass Readings: October 5 First: Galatians 2:1-2,7-14; Resp: Psalm 117:1-2; Gospel: Luke 11:1-4 The Lord, Who is Love (1 Jn 4:8, 16), commands us to love Him with all our hearts (Lk 10:27). However, we will do this only if we love our neighbors as ourselves (Lk 10:27). Love is not a matter of mere feelings and words. We must “love in deed and in truth and not merely talk about it” (1 Jn 3:18). We must be like the Good Samaritan and give hands-on, sacrificial service to those in need, even if...

“I went to extremes in persecuting the Church of God and tried to destroy it.” –Galatians 1:13 Mass Readings: October 4 First: Sirach 50:1,3-4,6-7; Resp: Psalm 16:1-2,5,7-8,11; Second: Galatians 6:14-18; Gospel: Matthew 11:25-30 At the time this teaching is written, there are terrorist groups that are persecuting Christians in certain Middle East nations “to extremes.” Christians are being driven out of entire regions. They are being beheaded. It seems that the witness to Jesus in these regions is lost forever, and that the witness of these Christians was “in vain” (Is 49:4). Yet the truth is that “the blood of...

“What must I do to inherit everlasting life?” –Luke 10:25 Mass Readings: October 3 First: Galatians 1:6-12; Resp: Psalm 111:1-2,7-10; Gospel: Luke 10:25-37 St. Paul founded the churches of Galatia on his missionary journeys. He preached that people were set right with God not by any efforts or actions of their own, but by having faith in Jesus Christ (Gal 2:16; 3:22, 26). Eventually, Paul moved on to other cities to preach the gospel. A few years later, traveling evangelists visited Galatia. These men taught that more was required to be justified with God. They accepted that faith in Jesus...