If there is one thing I love, it’s control. I find peace holding on to every aspect of my life. Nothing can go wrong—until it does. Until I lose grip on my career, my finances, my family, my future, and myself. Suddenly, I’m trying to catch the broken pieces in hopes I can put them back together just the way they were before. 

Like Abraham, I tend to lose faith in God when things don’t go my way. Sometimes, I create my version of God’s promises when my desire for control gets the best of me. But I learned that path always leads to a dead end—and a bigger mess because I refuse to let God have His way. That’s why, by His grace, His hand guides us back to Him when we’re lost and confused. He asks us if He can take the lead this time. 

When God asks you, let Him. Allow His promises to unfold before you in His own time. I tell you, it’s worth the wait. 

Gemma Casimsiman (gemmacasimsiman@gmail.com)

reflect

When are the times you refuse to let God take control? What do you need to surrender to Him now?

Father, when doubt, control, fear, and worry cloud our hearts, remind us that You are above worldly obstacles. We may not understand our current circumstances, but help us hold on to You even in uncertainty. Amen.

Saint Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, pray for us.

First Reading | 2 Samuel 7:4-5, 12-14, 16

Joseph is honored today as the husband of Mary. He freely takes on what must have been a daunting task—caring for a son who is not his own. Yet Joseph does so with commitment. We see how he protected Mary and the child Jesus on the flight to Egypt to escape the murderous intentions of Herod. Joseph clearly demonstrates himself to be a faithful and worthy man of God. Joseph comes from the line of King David, and is instrumental in the fulfillment of the prophecy of the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ.

⁴ The Lord spoke to Nathan and said: ⁵ “Go, tell my servant David, ¹² ‘When your time comes and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins, and I will make his kingdom firm. ¹³ It is he who shall build a house for my name. And I will make his royal throne firm forever. ¹⁴ I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. ¹⁶ Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever.’” 

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 89:2-3, 4-5, 27, 29

R: The son of David will live forever.

² The promises of the Lord I will sing forever; through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness, ³ for you have said, “My kindness is established forever”; in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness. (R) ⁴ “I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant: ⁵ forever will I confirm your posterity and establish your throne for all generations.” (R) ²⁷ “He shall say of me, ‘You are my father, my God, the Rock my savior!’ ²⁹ Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him, and my covenant with him stands firm.” (R)

Second Reading | Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22 

Abraham is a prototype for the faith, and Joseph stands in this mold too. Joseph gains nothing for himself in being obedient to God’s call. In fact, he loses much because he agreed to become Mary’s husband. In this selfish and individualistic time we live in, let us contemplate the selfless example of Joseph as we seek to understand the meaning of discipleship for us today.

¹³ Brothers and sisters: It was not through the law that the promise was made to Abraham and his descendants that he would inherit the world, but through the righteousness that comes from faith. ¹⁶ For this reason, it depends on faith, so that it may be a gift, and the promise may be guaranteed to all his descendants, not to those who only adhere to the law but to those who follow the faith of Abraham, who is the father of all of us, ¹⁷ as it is written, I have made you father of many nations. He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into being what does not exist. ¹⁸ He believed, hoping against hope, that he would become “the father of many nations,” according to what was said, “Thus shall your descendants be.” ²² That is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Gospel | Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24 (or Luke 2:41-51)

God’s call is something we should all seek. Joseph is not alone in being faithful to God’s call, but his role in the life of Jesus deserves to be reflected upon so we can draw lessons from it. Let us never be satisfied with mere lip service to the will of God or the example of the lives of the saints.

Gospel Acclamation

Blessed are those who dwell in your house, O Lord; they never cease to praise you.

¹⁶ Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ. ¹⁸ Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. ²⁰ Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. ²¹ She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” ²⁴ When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.

Reflect:

“Joseph’s rest revealed God’s will to him. In this moment of rest in the Lord, as we pause from our many daily obligations and activities, God is also speaking to us." (Pope Francis)

Read the Bible in one year! Read GENESIS 25 - 27 today.

Sleep Soundly Like Saint Joseph

On the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of Saint Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church, Pope Francis wrote an Apostolic Letter titled “Patris Corde” (“With a Father’s Heart”). He described Saint Joseph as the loving, tender, obedient, creatively courageous, hardworking, and humble father of Jesus and spouse of Mary. 

Pope Francis himself has a deep affinity for Saint Joseph. He brought his own statue of Saint Joseph with him from Argentina to the Vatican when he became pope. He intimated that whenever he has problems or special intentions, he writes it down and places it underneath the Sleeping Saint Joseph. The Supreme Pontiff trusts that Saint Joseph takes care of him, as well as the Lord’s flock, the Church, while, he, the earthly shepherd, is asleep. The sleeping posture of the saint also reminds Pope Francis (and all of us) to trust and entrust everything to the hands of the providential and merciful God. 

Yet, while Saint Joseph is truly a pious man, as the pope said, he is also downright practical. In the face of a deep crisis, Saint Joseph sleeps not only to rest and recover, but also to profoundly remember the faithfulness of God. He treasures deeply and turns to the words of the Psalmist, “Be still, and know that I am God!” (46:10). 

Consequently, an angel comes to reveal the divine plan to Saint Joseph while he is in slumber. The messenger also warns the guardian of the Redeemer about the imminent threat of King Herod to the Baby. Upon hearing the Word and moved by the Spirit of God, Saint Joseph gets up and fulfills the plan of God without delay. 

May the example of Saint Joseph help us to trust more fully in God’s plans for us. 

Fr. Paolo Asprer, SSP

reflection question

Are you in sleep debt? Ask the intercession of Saint Joseph for the gift of a holy and happy sleep. 

Saint Joseph, pray for us. Amen.

Today, I pray for: ____________________________________