Category: Prayer Intention

“I now say to you…” –Matthew 19:9 Before Jesus’ Incarnation, divorce was considered necessary. Laws regulating divorce even appear in the Bible (see Dt 24:1-4). Before Jesus saved us, polygamy, not monogamy, was widely practiced. Before Jesus, single persons were usually considered cursed. Before Jesus, our understanding of love, marriage, sexual relations, the dignity of the human person, and vocations was very incomplete and perverted. After we accept Jesus as Lord of our lives, we have the grace to develop great marriages of total self-giving. This usually results in large, happy, and beautiful families. In Christ, the divorced do not...

“How often must I forgive him?” –Matthew 18:21 Peter questioned Jesus: “How often must I forgive” my brother? Jesus answered: “seventy times seven times.” We must forgive all who have hurt us indefinitely times indefinitely (Mt 18:22). Other questions about forgiveness are the following: Question: Do I have the power to forgive? Answer: No, “to err is human; to forgive is divine.” Only God has the power to forgive. Q: Then how can I forgive? A: You can decide to accept God’s grace to forgive. This grace is always available. Q: How quickly must I forgive? A: Immediately. Otherwise, you...

“Such was the vision of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.” –Ezekiel 1:28 Ezekiel experienced an overwhelmingly awesome vision of the Lord. In this vision, God called Ezekiel to prophesy to the hardened, yet endangered Israelites. The king, Jehoiachin, was already in exile, and the people would soon suffer the same fate. In Ezekiel chapters 2 and 3, the Lord sends Ezekiel to speak His prophetic words of warning to “rebels…hard of face and obstinate of heart” who “will refuse to listen to” Ezekiel (Ez 2:3, 4; 3:7). God tells Ezekiel several times to not be afraid and...