“Take care not to forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery.” – Deuteronomy 6:12

       A man used to travel from his home in Novaliches to Our Lady of Lipa in Batangas to ask God to heal him from his serious illness. God answered his prayers and extended his life.

       A few years later, he was in Batangas for a business trip and passed by the church. He hesitated to drop by but his wife reminded him of the many times he went there to pray for healing. It was only then that he stopped at the place where his prayers had been answered.

       It’s easy to remember God when we are hurting. We run to church on our own. We go to great lengths to attend a healing Mass. But when we are healed and happy, we tend to forget God.

     As the Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land, Moses reminded them not to forget the Lord who brought them out of slavery. We are also reminded not to forget the Giver of our blessings as we enter into good times and prosperity. Let us learn from the lone leper who returned to Jesus to give thanks after realizing he had been healed. The other nine forgot God in their happiness. They forgot the Giver of their gifts. May we not suffer the same spiritual amnesia. Marjorie Ann Duterte (marjorie.travels@gmail.com)

Reflection:“Bless the Lord, my soul; and do not forget all his gifts, who pardons all your sins, and heals all your ills.” (Psalm 103:2-3)

Thank You, Father! May we never forget You when we are in need and most especially when we are delivered from it.

St. Jane Frances de Chantal, pray for us.

Moses tells the people that trust and faith in God is an all or nothing reality. We must love God with all our heart. The same is still true today. One of the great challenges people face now is how to prioritize their faith over and above their other commitments. We cannot spend our time accumulating the things of the world and then expect to receive the gift of eternal life.

4 Moses said to the people: “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! 5 Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today. 7 Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest. 8 Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be as a pendant on your forehead. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates. 10 “When the Lord, your God, brings you into the land which he swore to your fathers: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that he would give you, a land with fine, large cities that you did not build, 11 with houses full of goods of all sorts that you did not garner, with cisterns that you did not dig, with vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant; and when, therefore, you eat your fill, 12 take care not to forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. 13 The Lord, your God, shall you fear; him shall you serve, and by his name shall you swear.”

R: I love you, Lord, my strength.

1 [2] I love you, O Lord, my strength, 2 [3] O Lord, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer. (R) My God, my rock of refuge, my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold! 3 [4] Praised be the Lord, I exclaim, and I am safe from my enemies. (R) 46 [47] The Lord live! And blessed be my Rock! Extolled be God my savior! 50 [51] You who gave great victories to your king and showed kindness to your anointed, to David and his posterity forever. (R)

Jesus chastises His disciples a bit. It is good for us to be challenged and called to a deeper faith. There is always more to learn and experience in our walk with Christ if we respond to His grace. We should not expect that a miracle will happen just because we ask God for it. In fact, we should not presume we will always get what we request of God. It is a matter of learning how to entrust all situations to the Lord and allowing His will to be manifest in and through them.

Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel.

14 A man came up to Jesus, knelt down before him, 15 and said, “Lord, have pity on my son, for he is a lunatic and suffers severely; often he falls into fire, and often into water. 16 I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.” 17 Jesus said in reply, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I endure you? Bring the boy here to me.” 18 Jesus rebuked him and the demon came out of him, and from that hour the boy was cured. 19 Then the disciples approached Jesus in private and said, “Why could we not drive it out?” 20 He said to them, “Because of your little faith. Amen, I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

think: If you were to size up your faith, how big or small is it compared to a mustard seed?

Read the Bible

Read the Bible in one year 2 Maccabees 9-10

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

WHEN YOU EAT YOUR FILL

The Castilian Spaniards have a wonderful tradition. After a hearty meal, almost everyone mutters a half-blessing and a wish: “Que aproveche!” There is no equivalent either in English or Tagalog, but roughly it means, “May we profit from what we shared together.” May this meal give us what we need: health, strength and nourishment.

    Today, Moses reminds his people, after telling them the great Shema proclamation, “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone!” People forget things all too soon. The Israelites did not take too long to forget about their sufferings in Egypt. Instead of appreciating what they had, they were pining for what they could not have.

       As young seminarians, we used to have a standing joke every time we were served a hearty meal when we went for caroling during Christmas season. After getting our fill, we would joke to the host: “Ano ba ito, wala man lang caviar, at saka steak!” We were, of course, only pulling the leg of the generous host. We were full and there was no way we could ingest even another slice of the goodies they were offering us.

       But, on second thought, this is what we often do. We priests, who have been engaged in formation work, know this only too well. I guess it is among the most thankless jobs in the world. When they come out of formation and become problem individuals in the world, we get blamed. When they come out pretty well set, and become exemplary religious and priests, then they think and say they did it all by themselves. In the many years I poured out all my best efforts on training seminarians, very few come back to thank us. We do not even get to have the semblance of that Spanish half-blessing and half-wish, “que aprovechemos!”

      Moses the master of manners did not mince words: “When the Lord your God brings you to the land He swore to give… a land with fine cities you did not build… when you eat your fill, do not forget the Lord!” Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB

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

Like the Israelites, do you easily forget the Lord when times get tough?

Lord, I have a poor memory. I tend to remember the bad more than the good that happens to me. Grant me a thankful heart that rejoices in everything You allow me to experience. Amen.