A stump is the remaining portion of a tree that has been cut with its roots still in the ground. If we see a stump, most of the time, we see a useless dead tree. 

In 2010, my plans to go to Canada was cut. My application as a caregiver was declined. It was devastating, but life must go on. A few years later, my family joined The Feast. We experienced God’s love more through community, service, and ministry. Then in 2022, God gave me a new mission—to care for His people in Canada through The Feast! 

Through those years, God helped me deepen my faith, fix my relationships, and heal from my shame. What I thought was wasted time was all part of God’s plans. 

Do you have plans, dreams, or relationships that were cut? You don’t know what God can do from that tiny stump. Let your roots remain in the Lord as you work on deepening them. In time, miracles and blessings will shoot from that stump and will bear fruit! Monching Bueno (ramon_bueno@yahoo.com)

reflect:

What has God cut from your life? Cling to Him more in the midst of pain. Trust in His wonderful plans for your life.

Father God, thank You for all the stumps in our lives. We claim blessings coming from them. We will be faithful because we know You are faithful. Amen.

St. Francis Xavier, priest, pray for us.

This reading traces the Messiah’s origins in the House of David. This prophecy tells us about how the spirit of the Lord is with Him. This is affirmed in the accounts of Jesus’ baptism at the beginning of His ministry. We are informed about it to encourage us to reflect on what the ramifications of such a truth might be. 

¹ On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. ² The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord, ³ and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord. Not by appearance shall he judge, nor by hearsay shall he decide, ⁴ but he shall judge the poor with justice, and decide aright for the land’s afflicted. He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. ⁵ Justice shall be the band around his waist, and faithfulness a belt upon his hips. ⁶ Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion shall browse together, with a little child to guide them. ⁷ The cow and the bear shall be neighbors, together their young shall rest; the lion shall eat hay like the ox. ⁸ The baby shall play by the cobra’s den, and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair. ⁹ There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord, as water covers the sea. ¹⁰ On that day, the root of Jesse, set up as a signal for the nations, the Gentiles shall seek out, for his dwelling shall be glorious. 

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17

R: Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace forever.

¹ O God, with your judgment endow the king, and with your justice, the king’s son; ² He shall govern your people with justice and your afflicted ones with judgment. (R) ⁷ Justice shall flower in his days, and profound peace, till the moon be no more. ⁸ May he rule from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. (R) ¹² He shall rescue the poor when he cries out, and the afflicted when he has no one to help him. ¹³ He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor; the lives of the poor he shall save. (R) ¹⁷ May his name be blessed forever; as long as the sun his name shall remain. In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed; all the nations shall proclaim his happiness. (R) 

Gospel | Luke 10:21-24

As we prepare for Christmas, we should be filled with the joy of anticipating the birthday of Jesus. His birthday changed the history of mankind. Jesus, the Son of God, came among us and brought with Him the gift of redemption. Is there anything else that could inspire greater joy than this? Let us prepare ourselves well to welcome the Christ Child among us. 

Gospel Acclamation 

Behold, our Lord shall come with power; he will enlighten the eyes of his servants. 

²¹ Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. ²² All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.” ²³ Turning to the disciples in private he said, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. ²⁴ For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”

Read the Bible in one year! Read GALATIANS 4 - 6 today.

Have you seen the video of the cute little boy who can recite A to Z Bible verses without any difficulty at all? For example: “A—Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find; B—Be kind to one another; C—Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you.” My friend jokingly said that the boy can readily put to shame any adult or perhaps even priests with his familiarity with the Scriptures.    

In today’s Gospel, where Jesus teaches on discipleship and mission, He is moved to praise the Father. He is blessed with disciples who readily accept and follow Him. Jesus describes them as childlike. He even holds them up for everyone as examples. Compared to the scribes and Pharisees, the chosen ones are but mere “infants.” They do not have much to offer as far as the Law or the wisdom of this world is concerned. However, it was to them that God has given a far greater gift. God has bestowed upon them the gift of faith in Christ which, ironically, the scribes and the Pharisees have much need of. While the learned demand proofs, signs, and definitive answers, the childlike disciples—with their pure and simple faith in Jesus—believe Him. They recognize Him. They take heed of what He tells them. He is all and everything they need to know. Indeed, when we are too clever, sometimes we get to learn, we get to know too much, and in so doing, we tend to miss the forest for the trees.   

Let us ask the Father to make us more and more childlike in our faith and to be more trusting in God.  Let us ever be thankful to Him for giving us the gift of faith in Jesus. Fr. Rick Montañez, AA 

Reflection Question:

How receptive are you to the teachings of Jesus? 

Lord, I pray that, like children, I may have an open heart and mind to welcome Your Word in my life. Amen.

Today, I pray for: ___________________________________