The one who is spiritual, however, can judge everything... – 1 Corinthians 2:15

       Before I got into the habit of having quiet time and of reading the Bible, I would always rely on signs or on my personal interpretation of things. I would say things like, “I think God says no because…” without enough prayers and reflection. Because of that, I misunderstood some events in my life and felt that God didn’t answer some of my prayers.

        It wasn’t until I prayed for clarity, an open mind and heart, and for me to feel the Holy Spirit more that I understood some of God’s movements in my life. When I prayed for my broken relationships to be healed, I gave God two options to do it.

       I waited for a long time, and when His answer came, it was very clear. His answer was neither of my two options. But it was bigger and greater!

       Truly, His plans are greater than anything we can ever imagine. And this we can only understand when we pray, when we listen, and when we form a relationship with Him. Angel Directo(jeldirecto@gmail.com)

Reflection: Has God answered your prayer in a way you do not understand? Have you intently prayed for clarity? Have you tried reading and listening to His Word?

Dear Father, teach us to open our hearts and ears for things we cannot understand. Guide us to Your truth and lead us by Your Spirit.

We need to understand the events of our lives according to what the Spirit of God reveals to us. Sometimes we do not value the relevance of an event to our salvation. We need to ask the Lord for the understanding of the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit who will lead us to the truth and help us avoid the world’s false understanding.

1 Corinthians 2:10-16

10 Brothers and sisters: The Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God. 11 Among men, who knows what pertains to the man except his spirit that is within? Similarly, no one knows what pertains to God except the Spirit of God. 12 We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand the things freely given us by God. 13 And we speak about them not with words taught by human wisdom, but with words taught by the Spirit, describing spiritual realities in spiritual terms. 14 Now the natural man does not accept what pertains to the Spirit of God, for to him it is foolishness, and he cannot understand it, because it is judged spiritually. 15 The one who is spiritual, however, can judge everything but is not subject to judgment by anyone. 16 For “who has known the mind of the Lord, so as to counsel him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

Psalm 145:8-9, 10-11, 12-13, 13-14

R: The Lord is just in all his ways.

8 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness. 9 The Lord is good to all and compassionate toward all his works. (R) 10 Let all your works give you thanks, O Lord, and let your faithful ones bless you. 11 Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom and speak of your might. (R) 12 Making known to men your might and the glorious splendor of your Kingdom. 13 Your Kingdom is a Kingdom for all ages, and your dominion endures through all generations. (R) The Lord is faithful in all his words and holy in all his works. 14 The Lord lifts up all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down. (R)

Jesus speaks with authority and He lives out what He proclaims. This is one of the differences between His ministry and that of the Jewish leaders of His day. We have to take this lesson to heart as we share in Jesus’ mission. The power behind what we say will be proof of the witness of our lives.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION

A great prophet has arisen in our midst and God has visited his people.

Luke 4:31-37

31 Jesus then went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, 32 and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. 33 In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, 34 “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are — the Holy One of God!” 35 Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet! Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm. 36 They were all amazed and said to one  another, “What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.” 37 And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.

think: We need to understand the events of our lives according to what the Spirit of God reveals to us.

Thank You Lord for: __________________

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR  Isaiah 57-61

THE NEED FOR A SPIRITUAL MICROSCOPE

What a scary scene in the Synagogue of Capernaum! Jesus is confronted by the devil in the form of a man who is possessed by evil spirits. Interesting that Jesus does not discuss things with the devil. He just commands, “Be quiet! Come out of him!”

       The devil is still a reality in our times. He will not appear to us with horns and tail and an ugly face. No, “the devil wears Prada,” meaning he has adjusted to the modern world and approaches us in the guise of a kind and nice person. But we should not forget that there are not only evil spirits, but that there is a powerful Spirit, also unseen — the Holy Spirit.

       Before the invention of the microscope, we could not “see” what was just under our noses. Even today, primitive people who have been isolated from the modern world and its technology laugh at the idea that their drinking water is full of tiny life forms invisible to the naked eye but could be very harmful to their health. A microscope reveals this reality.

       We need a spiritual microscope that makes us see unseen realities. Because the evil spirits and the Holy Spirit are in themselves so transparent that we cannot see them – and we often think they don’t exist. We can see only their effects. Evil or spiritual gifts are some of their effects. In other words, cruelty, human-made suffering, terrorism are effects of the evil spirits. And the Holy Spirit is like the wind which we cannot see but we sense only by its effects: coolness on the skin, leaves on the trees moving, waves on the water, and so on.

       But one of the most important effects of the Holy Spirit is its focus on Jesus and the Father. That is precisely why Jesus was so keen on sending His Spirit — so that we might finally come to understand who Jesus is. As He said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, He will lead you to the complete truth…” (John 16:13-14). You know you are using your spiritual microscope when you look at the effects. Fr. Rudy Horst, SVD

REFLECTION QUESTION: Do you analyze the roots of events around you to discern whether the evil spirit or the Holy Spirit is behind them?

Lord, thank You for opening my eyes to unseen realities. Help me to be always alert of the causes of events around me and trust that You will protect me from evil influences. Amen.