Category: Prayer Intention

“FREE AT LAST”

“You shall go before the Lord to prepare straight paths for Him, giving His people a knowledge of salvation in freedom from their sins.” –Luke 1:76-77 On this Christmas Eve day and last day of Advent, we sing, for the last time until next Advent, “O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel.” We are mourning in lonely exile. We cry out and sing out for God to visit and ransom His people this Christmas season (Lk 1:68). We must be “rid of fear and delivered from the enemy” (Lk 1:74). We need Emmanuel, the Messiah, Jesus. Only Jesus,...

JESUS CHRIST IS COMING TO TOWN

“Who can stand when He appears?” –Malachi 3:2 Mass Readings: December 23 First: Malachi 3:1-4,23-24; Resp: Psalm 25:4-5,8-10,14; Gospel: Luke 1:57-66 Jesus is coming! He is coming in a new way into our lives and our world this Christmas. “Yes, He is coming” (Mal 3:1). His first coming was humble and generally unrecognized by most of the world. The secular culture is working hard to ensure that Jesus’ coming this Christmas will also be unrecognized. The culture has replaced Jesus’ Christmas coming with the “holiday” coming of Santa Claus. This Christmas, will you be among the humble shepherds who recognized...

JOIN THE REVOLUTION

“He has shown might with His arm; He has confused the proud in their inmost thoughts.” –Luke 1:51 Mass Readings: December 22 First: 1 Samuel 1:24-28; Resp: 1 Samuel 2:1,4-8; Gospel: Luke 1:46-56 Hannah lived during a time when the people of God were weak in faith, when “a revelation of the Lord was uncommon and vision infrequent” (1 Sm 3:1). She prophesied a spiritual, economic, and social revolution in which “the bows of the mighty are broken, while the tottering gird on strength. The well-fed hire themselves out for bread, while the hungry batten on spoil” (1 Sm 2:4-5)....

HIDE AND SEE

“Let Me see you.” –Song of Songs 2:14 Mass Readings: December 21 First: Song of Solomon 2:8-14; Resp: Psalm 33:2-3,11-12,20-21; Gospel: Luke 1:39-45 We’re hiding from Jesus. He’s trying to look at us, but we’re hiding from Him – whether it’s behind a boulder (Sg 2:14), a sinful, worldly lifestyle, or a veil of fear. It’s estimated that almost half of registered Catholics hide from Jesus simply by not showing up at Mass on Sunday. We may be hiding from Jesus, but that doesn’t stop Him from looking for us (Lk 19:10). He loves us so much that He came...

“O COME, O COME IMMANUEL?”

“The virgin shall be with Child, and bear a Son, and shall name Him Immanuel.” –Isaiah 7:14 Mass Readings: December 20 First: Isaiah 7:10-14; Resp: Psalm 24:1-6;Gospel: Luke 1:26-38 One of the greatest prophecies in the history of the human race is Isaiah’s prophecy of “Immanuel.” This does not merely mean that God is present but that God is incarnate (see Mt 1:23). “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us” (Jn 1:14). God became a man. Immanuel is Jesus, Who is God incarnate, crucified, risen, glorified, and eucharistic. Immanuel is Jesus, a Sign as “deep as the...