Tagged: daily bread

“Jonah made ready to flee to Tarshish away from the Lord.” –Jonah 1:3 Jonah refused to obey God’s call. Then the weather turned nasty. The Lord “hurled a violent wind upon the sea” (Jon 1:4). Jonah tried to weather the storm by going to sleep (Jon 1:5), but the weather got even nastier (Jon 1:11). The sailors on the boat with Jonah tried to escape the terrible weather, but “the sea grew ever more turbulent” (Jon 1:13). Only when they threw Jonah into the sea did the hurricane stop (Jon 1:15). Many people have not obeyed God’s calls. Some have...

“Therefore let no man separate what God has joined.” –Mark 10:9 Jesus does not want husband and wife to be separated. Also, He became indignant at His disciples for separating some children from Him (Mk 10:14). Furthermore, Jesus does not want parents separated from their children. Let no overtime, lifestyle, day care, extracurricular activities, school, or other responsibilities separate what God has joined together. Moreover, Jesus does not want family members separated from each other by TV, overwork, communication breakdown, and independent lifestyles. Jesus even refuses to separate Christians from their enemies (see Mt 13:30). The Lord does not want...

“He Who has brought disaster upon you will, in saving you, bring you back enduring joy.” –Baruch 4:29 Most people have suffered disasters in their lives. Some of these have been caused by their own sins. If we would seek the Lord ten times more zealously than we strayed from Him, He would save us from disaster and bring us back a joy that this time will last (Bar 4:28). The Lord turns all things, even disasters, to the good for those who love Him (Rm 8:28). If we repent and seek the Lord, we will understand that the sufferings...

Jesus “said: ‘Come after Me.’ ” –Luke 9:59 Jesus calls us to follow Him not on our terms but on His. He does not preach the prosperity gospel. In fact, Jesus doesn’t even promise us a roof over our heads. The foxes and birds have better “benefits” than we do (Lk 9:58). Moreover, Jesus doesn’t let us choose our own pace but demands we jump when He says “Jump.” “Now is the acceptable time” (2 Cor 6:2), and we’ve no time to bury fathers or say good-bye to family (Lk 9:60-61). Jesus demands our “all.” It would be unreasonable for...

“I solemnly assure you, you shall see…” –John 1:51 Several hundred years ago, the archangel Gabriel was especially recognized through the custom of praying the Angelus. In the Angelus, we think of the annunciation of the good news of Jesus’ Incarnation and our salvation. It is customary to pray the Angelus at morning, noon, and evening. Over a hundred years ago, Pope Leo XIII composed the St. Michael Prayer and thus made the archangel Michael better known and appreciated than ever before. The St. Michael Prayer is a clear statement about the reality and importance of spiritual warfare, that is,...