“Can you buy me these?” “Please allow me to do this.” “Please give me that.” These are some of my children’s requests. Sometimes their requests are outrageous, so I say no. Other times, I know they’re not yet ready, so I wait until they are. And there are times when I know what they need, so even if they haven’t asked for it, I give it to them.

Sound familiar? These sound like our prayers too. Lord, please help us get a house. Lord, please allow me to get that job. Lord, please give that person to me as my partner. And so on. I believe every father’s heart is crafted from our Father’s. Just as I would do anything to provide and give the requests of my children, more so does our Father in heaven.

Jesus knows His Father’s heart that’s why He taught us the Lord’s Prayer. The next time you don’t know how and what to pray, say the Lord’s Prayer. Take it to heart and know that the Father’s got your back. 

Monching Bueno (ramon_bueno@yahoo.com)

reflect

As you pray “Our Father” today, believe in your heart that our Father is listening to your every word. 

Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen

.Saint Benedicta of Laon, pray for us.

Malachi laments that it is the evil who prosper and seem to be blessed while the righteous suffer. Since Satan is the lord of this earth, it should not surprise us that he rewards his servants with earthly riches. However, it comes at a huge price—their eternal souls. Let us focus on the infinitely great reward that God is storing up for us in heaven, which will make all the riches of this world seem so rubbish in comparison.  

¹³ You have defied me in word, says the Lord, yet you ask, “What have we spoken against you?” ¹⁴ You have said, “It is vain to serve God, and what do we profit by keeping his command, and going about in penitential dress in awe of the Lord of hosts? ¹⁵ Rather must we call the proud blessed; for indeed evildoers prosper, and even tempt God with impunity.” ¹⁶ Then they who fear the Lord spoke with one another, and the Lord listened attentively; and a record book was written before him of those who fear the Lord and trust in his name. ¹⁷ And they shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, my own special possession, on the day I take action. And I will have compassion on them, as a man has compassion on his son who serves him. ¹⁸ Then you will again see the distinction between the just and the wicked; between the one who serves God, and the one who does not serve him. ¹⁹ For lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the Lord of hosts. ²⁰ But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 1:1-2, 3, 4, 6

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)

Gospel | Luke 11:5-13

In today’s Gospel, Jesus compares the reluctance of a friend to get up at night to give some food to an unexpected guest with the willingness of our Heavenly Father to give us our needs. God, being the perfection of Fatherhood, will always give us the best so we can grow in the likeness of His Son. What we need to do is persevere in prayer, as Saint Monica did in praying for thirty years for Augustine’s conversion.

Gospel Acclamation 

Open our hearts, O Lord, to listen to the words of your Son.

⁵ Jesus said to his disciples: “Suppose one of you has a friend to whom he goes at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, ⁶ for a friend of mine has arrived at my house from a journey and I have nothing to offer him,’ ⁷ and he says in reply from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed. I cannot get up to give you anything.’ ⁸ I tell you, if he does not get up to give him the loaves because of their friendship, he will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence. ⁹ “And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. ¹¹ What father among you would hand his son a snake when he asks for a fish? ¹² Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg? ¹³ If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”

Reflect:

How faithful has God been in providing for your needs? 

Do you also help provide what other people need?

Read the Bible in one year! Read AMOS 1 - 3 today.

Jesus now teaches us about perseverance in prayer. It’s significant that He preached this on His way to Jerusalem, where He would suffer and die. In times of trouble and despair, Jesus wants us to uphold prayer. But what does He mean by perseverance in prayer?

The Gospel today usually becomes a reference for understanding the “prayer of petition.” For those who implore God’s help, especially for matters beyond their capacity, Jesus’ words are comforting: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” It appears that all our requests will be granted by the Lord. But is this truly what Jesus meant? We should not stop at these phrases. Jesus tells us that God yields to us only if what we ask for in prayer is good for us. More importantly, He promises the Holy Spirit to those who ask, for the Holy Spirit inspires perseverance and provides wisdom regarding our prayers.

We often tire of praying, feeling frustrated when God seems silent. At times, prayer feels empty. What keeps us trusting and praying is the Holy Spirit. When we feel like giving up, we should call upon the Holy Spirit. Through perseverance, God’s will becomes clearer to us, aligning our desires with His. Perseverance in prayer does not change His will but transforms our understanding and gears our hearts toward acceptance. Thus, whether our prayers are granted or not, we readily accept God’s will.

Most importantly, perseverance in prayer strengthens our relationship with God, which should not only depend on the graces received but also on our desire to be with Him. The goal of prayer is not only to express our desires but to deepen our relationship with God. May we love the Giver of the grace, not just the graces that we receive.

Fr. Franz Dizon

reflection question

How persevering are you in prayer?

Lord, may I always fix my sight on You. May it not be nailed to my desires so that my relationship with You grows deeper and my understanding broadens. Amen.

Today, I pray for: __________________________________________