“I, the Lord, alone probe the mind and test the heart.” – Jeremiah 17:10

       I had chills the night before and I had a cold so I went to the hospital to know what medicine I should take. It was standard procedure for the nurse in the clinic to take the patient’s blood pressure (BP), but she was alarmed that mine was too high. They sent me to the emergency room immediately. My blood pressure was even higher by the time I got to the ER so they moved me to critical care. The doctors took blood tests and X-rays to check my organs. Right up to the moment they hooked me to a drip and admitted me, I didn’t feel any panic.

       But when I moved to a room and the nurses would come hourly to check my BP, I started to worry. Knowing every BP reading didn’t help calm me at all. That’s when the fear of dying gripped me. I prayed and asked God for help. I was only able to sleep when I played liturgical songs by David Haas.

      That medical condition tested me literally and spiritually. Looking back, I know I should have trusted God more and not worried. I realized He guided me to be in the hospital at just the right time so I could have the medical attention I didn’t even know I needed. Mae Ignacio (maemi04@aim.com)

Dear Lord, I pray that through every trial we encounter, we will learn to trust in You and know that You have our backs all the time.

St. Clement Mary Hofbauer, pray for us.

We need to plant the roots of our faith in the water that comes from the Temple of the Lord. We need to trust in God’s Word and allow Him to direct our lives. Otherwise, our faith withers and dies. If we are rooted in God, then we will bear amazing fruit. Not just for us, but for others as well. This is the mysterious way of the Gospel – it is a blessing for all.

5 Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away from the Lord. 6 He is like a barren bush in the desert that enjoys no change of season, but stands in a lava waste, a salt and empty earth. 7 Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose hope is the Lord. 8 He is like a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream: It fears not the heat when it comes, its leaves stay green; In the year of drought it shows no distress, but still bears fruit. 9 More tortuous than all else is the human heart, beyond remedy; who can understand it? 10 I, the Lord, alone probe the mind and test the heart, to reward everyone according to his ways, according to the merit of his deeds.

R: Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.

1 Blessed the man who follows not the counsel of the wicked nor walks in the way of sinners, nor sits in the company of the insolent, 2 but delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on his law day and night. (R) 3 He is like a tree planted near running water, that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. Whatever he does, prospers. (R) 4 Not so the wicked, not so; they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the just, but the way of the wicked vanishes. (R)

It is good practice to reflect on the end of our life and ask ourselves what we want to see when we look back. Jesus’ parable today invites us to reflect on the possibilities. Let us ensure there will be no regrets and a lot of accomplishments at the end of our life.

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart and yield a harvest through perseverance.

19 Jesus said to the Pharisees: “There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day. 20 And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores. 22 When the poor man died, he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and from the netherworld, where he was in torment, he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.’ 25 Abraham replied, ‘My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented. 26 Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing who might wish to go from our side to yours or from your side to ours.’ 27 He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they too come to this place of torment.’ 29 But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’ 30 He said, ‘Oh no, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 31 Then Abraham said, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.’”

think: Imagine your funeral. What do you want your family, friends and colleagues to say in their eulogy for you?

Read the Bible in one year Genesis 7-9

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

WHO IS YOUR LAZARUS?

To be rich is not bad at all. So, what was wrong with the rich man in today’s Gospel?

       He lived in isolated luxury, absorbed with the latest in fashion and the finest in dining. He did not hurt anyone. He didn’t drive Lazarus off his property. He didn’t mind Lazarus hanging around his table for the leftovers. He didn’t criticize him for not getting a job to earn a living. Then, what was the rich man’s sin?

       He didn’t treat Lazarus as a person. To the rich man, Lazarus was simply a part of the landscape and not an object of compassion.

       Our words “compassion” and “sympathy” come from Latin and Greek root words that mean to “suffer with.” We don’t have to seek suffering; it comes by itself. It is part of life. And when we experience affliction, our personal suffering can make us more humane and open us up to the problems and sufferings of others. We become more perceptive of other’s hardships, and our hearts are quicker to respond compassionately. Yet suffering can be a double-edged sword. It can also push us into envy, hatred, bitterness and isolation if we are proud, or if we forget that God permits trials to purify us and that He is in charge and surely has a plan for us.

       Suffering also makes us more passionate for souls. Unfortunately for his brothers, the rich man’s zeal was a “zeal come lately.” Because he spent all his energy and fortune in avoiding suffering, he was totally absorbed in self. The meaning of his life was completely temporal, and in the end he had nothing to show for it. One of our greatest sufferings in purgatory will be the realization that we could have done so much more good for the “Lazaruses” in our neighborhood, even in our own families, especially for their salvation. Fr. Rudy Horst, SVD

---------- REFLECTION QUESTIONS ----------

How have you responded to suffering in your life? Has it made you more compassionate or more bitter and self-centered?

Lord, You gave me today a chance to look more seriously at myself and to examine if my heart is set on You, if You are my treasure. Perhaps in some areas, I still cling to the treasures of this world. But now I want to get rid of them. Rid me of my selfishness. Make me Your humble servant. Amen.