MORE THAN WORDS

He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” – Luke 8:21

Good old-fashioned values— honesty, respect, honor, trust—are big words. But they remain just words until we move beyond the words and live life guided by them.

Jesus revealed Himself to 12 simple men who saw closely how He lived. They found His actions consistent with His teachings. He became the inspiring factor in their lives as they trusted and followed Him.

Serving in the Light of Jesus Family, I’ve been blessed with the friendship of people whose lives match their words. I watch them live their lives and marvel at how they do the right thing at all times. For them, it is instinctive—their natural way of staying faithful to God’s commands. I admire the constancy of their devotion to take the moral high road, the effortless alignment of their talk and walk. I keep these people as role models who inspire me to pursue God, to live my life within the realm of old-fashioned values so that I, too, may inspire those closest to me. It is my highest desire to leave my children this legacy—their mother was a woman whose quiet actions spoke louder than her words. Marie G. Ferrer (smgferrer@gmail.com)

Reflect: “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:18, NIV)

Father, grant me the grace and the courage to always walk my talk so that those around me may not just hear about You in my words but see You in the way I live. May I glorify You in every thought, word, and deed.

Blessed John Henry Newman, pray for us.

The Israelites have returned home and have begun to rebuild their lives and the Temple of God. There is a concerted effort to reestablish themselves in Jerusalem and the surrounding lands. They even receive the assistance of some foreign rulers. Why do the foreign rulers help the Israelites? Perhaps they figured that a stable Israel rather than a power vacuum was better for lasting peace.

Ezra 6:7-8, 12, 14-20

7 King Darius issued and order to the officials of West-of-Euphrates: “Let the governor and the elders of the Jews continue to work on that house of God; they are to rebuild it on its former site. 8 I also issue this decree concerning your dealing with these elders of the Jews in the rebuilding of that house of God from the royal revenue, the taxes of West-of-euphrates, let these men be repaid for their expenses, in full and without delay. 12 I, Darius, have issued this decree; let it be carefully executed.” 14 The elders of the Jews continued to make progress in the building, supported by the message of the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, son of Iddo. They finished the building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus and Darius and of Artaxerxes, king of Persia. 15 They completed this house on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. 16 The children of Israel—priests, Levites, and the other returned exiles—celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy. 17 For the dedication of this house of God, they offered one hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs, together with twelve he-goats as a sin offering for all Israel, in keeping with the number of the tribes of Israel. 18 Finally, they set up the priests in their classes and the Levites in their divisions for the service of God in Jerusalem, as is prescribed in the book of Moses. 19 The exiles kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month. 20 The Levites, every one of whom had purified himself for the occasion, sacrificed the Passover for the rest of the exiles, for their brethren the priests, and for themselves.

PSALM 

Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5

1 I rejoiced because they said to me, “We will go up to the house of the Lord.” 2 And now we have set foot within your gates, O Jerusalem. (R) 3 Jerusalem, built as a city with compact unity. 4 To it the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord. (R) According to the decree for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. 5 In it are set up judgment seats, seats for the house of David. (R)

Jesus wants to get away from the sense of privilege of whether one is blessed or not. When it comes to salvation and blessing, what matters is what the individual does, how one lives, not what their parentage may be. Everyone is equal in the eyes of the Lord. If you ask God to bless you, then you need to have faith in Him and show that faith by how you live.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION

Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.

Luke 8:19-21

19 The mother of Jesus and his brothers came to him but were unable to join him because of the crowd. 20 He was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and they wish to see you.” 21 He said to them in reply, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it.”

think: “Before God we are all equally wise, and equally foolish.” (Albert Einstein)

Read the Bible in one year - Psalms 146-150  

 

 

PRAYER AND GOD’S WILL

The heart of a religious life is doing God’s will. In today’s Gospel Jesus says, “Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

Our business is to pray and discern God’s will every day because if we do not know His will for us, we may end up doing things that God does not want us to do. But how do we know God’s will?

What is our assurance that we are doing His will? Do they come in dreams, visions, and locutions? Gone are the days when people would hear voices and literally have visions telling them God’s will for them. Vocation directors and directress and those handling formation are extra careful when they meet formandees like this.

Our normal means to know God’s will is prayer. It is in prayer where we are dissolved in God’s presence. It is in prayer where we get so close to Jesus.

But it’s sad that prayer is the first thing we give up in our daily activities. The first thing we let go is silent prayer more than our work. And the consequence is we commit mistakes and wrong decisions one after the other.

Doing the will of God is manifested through people, through events, and through situations. But we need prayer to validate it and discern if what happened is genuinely what God is asking of us.

In Matthew 7:21, it says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

It is not enough that you wear a religious habit, pray the rosary, say a few novenas, and go to Mass once a week. It is of utmost importance that you know God’s will for you.

To know God’s will, the spiritual habitat is prayer. It must be our everyday business. In fact, in it we derive our identity. It is the first and foremost duty of all Christians to pray unceasingly because in prayer we discover what is God’s will. Fr. Haluendo Amit, OCD

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

What priority do you give to prayer each day? Make an effort to begin and end your day in prayer.

Make me know Your will for me, Lord. Amen.

Today, I pray for: _____________________________