Category: Daily Reflections

“This is My body, which is for you.” —1 Corinthians 11:24 The Mass makes present the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Therefore, to enter into the spirit of the Mass, we must “proclaim the death of the Lord” (1 Cor 11:26) and offer our bodies to the Lord as living sacrifices (Rm 12:1). The spirit of the Mass is the spirit of sacrifice. Thus it is important to fast before Mass, deny ourselves, and take up our crosses each day (Lk 9:23) with the intention of uniting ourselves to Jesus crucified (see Gal 2:19) and sacrificed (see Heb...

“God says, ‘Why are you transgressing the Lord’s commands, so that you cannot prosper?’ ” —2 Chronicles 24:20 When we disobey God, we not only do not prosper, we cannot prosper. We may look like we’re prospering, but looks are deceiving. How many superstars and celebrities are deeply depressed and suicidal? When we disobey God, even “sure things” don’t work. A few Arameans came against King Joash’s troops. Joash couldn’t lose, but he did. “The Lord surrendered a very large force” into the Arameans’ power (2 Chr 24:24). When we disobey God, we feel compelled to worry about even simple...

“Our Father…” —Matthew 6:9 “The expression ‘God the Father’ had never been revealed to anyone” before Jesus taught us to pray “Our Father” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2779). When Jesus taught His disciples to pray the Our Father, He used a word for Father, “Abba,” that can be translated as “Daddy.” Addressing God as Father only occurs a very few times in the Old Testament (e.g. Is 64:7). So those who originally heard Jesus teach them the Our Father must have been shocked. Even today, many wounded people admit that they cannot relate to God as gentle and loving...

“He picked up Elijah’s mantle.” –2 Kings 2:13 Elijah passed on his mission, ministry, and power to Elisha. Do you have a mission to pass on? Do you know your mission? If you are doing something of long-term significance for the Lord, you need to disciple others to carry on that mission. In this way, the Church may be built up as an ever more effective instrument of establishing God’s kingdom on earth. To build the Church and to leave behind us a great spiritual legacy, we must: 1) be doing something of long-term significance, that is, doing God’s will...