Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him. She came and fell at his feet. – Mark 7:25

     Have you ever been in a hopeless situation where you’ve done everything and yet nothing seems to go right?

       I remember a time when our business experienced a big hump. In June 2014, we started losing clients one by one until we had none. I was at the point of giving up ministry work to go back to full-time corporate life. As I was praying to God on my knees one night, I felt a strong reassurance and peace in my heart that God would see us through. Then in April 2015, with almost nothing left in our bank account, a new client came. The following month, another client came. The clients kept coming even without us looking for them. Today, we are back in business and it continues to flourish.

       When you are at a loss, when you no longer know what to do, that’s the perfect time to witness the hand of God at work. Surrender everything to Him and trust in His great plan for you. Know that God will always see you through, even in your most difficult times. Joel N. Saludares (joelsaludares@yahoo.com)

Reflection:What trials are you experiencing today? Can you come to God in total surrender, trusting and believing that He will see you through?

Lord, I surrender to You my worries. I surrender to You my trials. May Your peace reign in my heart today.

St. Jerome Emiliani, pray for us.

It is not good for man to be alone so God created a woman to be with him. The relationship of Adam and Eve at this point is perfect. But sin will damage their relationship with God, with the world and with each other. Let us reflect on today’s First Reading and be warned about how damaging sin really is.

18 The Lord God said: “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him.” 19 So the Lord God formed out of the ground various wild animals and various birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each of them would be its name. 20 The man gave names to all the cattle, all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals; but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man. 21 So the Lord God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 The Lord God then built up into a woman the rib that he had taken from the man. When he brought her to the man, 23 the man said: “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of ‘her man’ this one has been taken.” 24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one flesh. 25 The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame.

R: Blessed are those who fear the Lord.

1 Blessed are you who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways! 2 For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you be, and favored. (R) 3 Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your home; your children like olive plants around your table. (R) 4 Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord. 5 The Lord bless you from Zion: may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. (R)

GOSPEL

Jesus healed the daughter of the Syrophoenician woman because of her persevering faith. Like her, let us also persevere in asking for God’s grace. He gives His healing love to all people.

Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you and is able to save your souls.

24 Jesus went to the district of Tyre. He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it, but he could not escape notice. 25 Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him. She came and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth, and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter. 27 He said to her, “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” 28 She replied and said to him, “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.” 29 Then he said to her, “For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of your daughter.” 30 When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

think: What is Jesus’ message in healing the Syrophoenecian woman’s daughter?

Read the Bible in one year  1 Corinthians 1-4

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

HAVE FAITH IN GOD

Jesus is traveling around the outskirts of Galilee. He is trying to avoid opposition and to have some private time with His disciples to teach them. Since the feeding of the five thousand, He has been on the run, avoiding crowds. Moving away from Galilee, He wanted to avoid Herod Antipas who was in power at the time. Many people in Galilee wanted to make Jesus king and this caused Herod to be hostile towards Jesus. But Jesus could not escape notice, even in the pagan territory, which was good news. In Jesus’ mind, He had been sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

       Jesus is in Tyre, a developing city in the district of ancient Greece. Mark tells the story of a woman from that district who comes to Jesus requesting His help for her daughter. In Matthew’s Gospel, where this story is repeated, Jesus seems sterner. He does not say a word. Jesus is sent only to the lost sheep of Israel, yet the woman is happy to settle for second best, for the “crumbs that fall from the master’s table.” Jesus is impressed with her faith and heals her daughter.

       This story beautifully conveys the heart of Jesus and the faith of a pagan. Jesus came to serve the lost. The woman represents those who have lost the way and are seeking to find their way to God. She has heard about Jesus somewhere. The faith of the woman touches Jesus. So many times in the Gospel, Jesus is impressed with the faith of those who come to Him. Many are healed because of their faith — they believe in Jesus.

        Interestingly, in this Gospel, the woman calls Jesus “Lord” — the only time this title of Jesus appears and is mentioned by a pagan. She recognizes Him as the one who is to save and bring healing to her daughter.

          Notice this woman’s audacity to seek Jesus, her persistence even when it seems that He won’t budge, her humility in her willingness to settle for second best. Jesus rewards her faith and she leaves satisfied and strengthened in her faith in Jesus. Let us imitate her in faith, humility and trust in the Lord. Fr. Brian Steele, MGL

---------- REFLECTION QUESTION -----------

Do you persevere with the Lord? Do you place your trust in Him no matter what?

Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief and strengthen my faith. Amen.