Tagged: Daily Reflection

FIRSTHAND

“I assure you, brothers, the gospel I proclaimed to you is no mere human invention. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I schooled in it.” –Galatians 1:11-12 Unlike St. Paul, we have received the gospel from other men and women. Most of us have been schooled in it, possibly having gone to Catholic school eight, twelve, or more years. Like Paul, however, we must base our personal relationship with Jesus not on what others have said, but on who we say He is (Mt 16:15). We must not just know about Jesus; we must know Jesus....

“STAY WITH THIS TASK” (2 Tm 4:2)

“I will always hope.” –Psalm 71:14 “The time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but, following their own desires, will surround themselves with teachers who tickle their ears. They will stop listening to the truth and will wander off to fables” (2 Tm 4:3-4). Some of them will even gain positions of power in the Church and redirect the glory and money that rightfully belongs to God to themselves (Mk 12:38-40). To such a people, “stubborn of brow and obstinate in heart” (Ez 3:7), God sends His disciples to proclaim and teach His “word, to stay with...

LOVED ONE

“Who among you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wasteland and follow the lost one until he finds it?” –Luke 15:4 One of the most beautiful – and disappointing – verses of the Bible is: “God is Love” (1 Jn 4:16). We all want to be loved, but we don’t necessarily value being loved by Someone Who by His nature loves everyone. We want to be loved exclusively, individually, and specially. If someone told you “I love you,” you would probably be impressed. If that same person repeated...

“STOP, IN THE NAME OF LOVE”

“You shall love the Lord your God with all…” –Mark 12:30 Think about your relationship with the person you love the most. It’s one thing to say: “I love you.” It’s quite another thing to put everything aside and demonstrate your love for them by devoting your full attention to them for a long period of time. Married couples are often so busy that they are relegated to sharing a quick “I love you” as they pass each other in the garage. Occasionally, one of the spouses may say: “Time out! Stop! Enough is enough. We’re canceling soccer and spending...

I’M DYING TO BE MARRIED

“When people rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage but live like angels in heaven.” —Mark 12:25 Once while attending a men’s retreat, the above passage was read for the Gospel during Mass. As the priest proclaimed that people do not marry in heaven, a man near me, who had been married nearly forty years, exclaimed, “Thank God!” Of course, this remark elicited a few chuckles among the nearby men. Tomorrow’s readings focus on the beauty of love and marriage, but today’s readings focus on death and marriage. An insult from his wife, who was...