Tagged: Daily Promises

ON THE VERGE

“You led Your people like a flock.” —Psalm 77:21 In today’s first eucharistic reading, Moses has led the Israelites through the desert for forty years. The people are now on the verge of entering into the Promised Land. They’re so close to reaching their long-awaited goal that they can almost taste it. Before crossing into the land, Moses stops the people on the verge and has them recall what God has done for them. Through a long discourse that comprises the entire book of Deuteronomy, Moses pauses and reminds his people that it’s more important to possess the God of...

BITTERNESS MUST GO

“Because you were not faithful to Me in showing forth My sanctity before the Israelites, you shall not lead this community into the land I will give them.” —Numbers 20:12 Moses was not faithful to the Lord in showing forth the Lord’s sanctity when he brought forth water from the rock. Consequently, God told Moses he would not enter the Promised Land. Some people speculate that Moses should not have struck the rock twice or that he said the wrong thing to the people. The psalmist clarified this by observing that Moses’ mistake was the “rash utterance” that “passed his...

FAITH-CRIMES

“Forty years shall you suffer for your crimes.” —Numbers 14:34 Today’s Eucharistic readings strongly show that faith makes the difference between life and death. A mother’s “great faith” in Jesus (Mt 15:28) saved her daughter. The complete lack of faith of the Israelites, who had recently walked through the Red Sea on dry land, meant that they would die in the desert (Nm 14:29). Did you know that the Lord considers it a crime (Nm 14:34) to lack faith in Him and discourage (Nm 13:32) others from having faith in Him? Faith is not an add-on for the Christian life;...

SLEEPING IN THE CLASSROOM

“Peter and those with him had fallen into a deep sleep; but awakening, they saw His glory.” —Luke 9:32 Jesus took Peter, James, and John off by themselves, and “went up onto a mountain to pray” (Lk 9:28). “While He was praying, His face changed in appearance and His clothes became dazzlingly white” (Lk 9:29). However, Peter, James, and John had fallen into a deep sleep (Lk 9:32). When they awoke, they were in a fog (Lk 9:34). They heard God tell them to listen to Jesus (Lk 9:35). They saw Jesus transfigured in radiant glory, but they missed the...

OVER-EATERS VICTORIOUS

“Would that we had meat for food! We remember the fish we used to eat without cost in Egypt, and the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic.” —Numbers 11:4-5 Sometimes we’re more interested in the salad bar than in salvation! After liberation from 430 years of slavery, the only thing the Israelites can say is: “Where’s the beef?” (see Nm 11:4) Jesus was healing people by the thousands, but the disciples wanted to stop the proceedings so everyone could go and buy something to eat (Mt 14:15). “Such as these will end in disaster! Their god...