Let Loose the Hounds

there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. 
Mt.13:43

Jesus gives only two harvest time options... weeping or shining. He is very clear about heaven and very clear about hell. I hear lots of preaching about the former but not too much about the latter. 

Although the pull of love is what we preach, sometimes the hounds of heaven are just as effective in getting people into the kingdom. Jesus wasn't shy in using them.

Jesus, in the areas of my life where I toy with sin and am complacent, let loose the hounds. 

Wheat among the Weeds

“Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this.” he answered. 
Mt.13:27,28

The intended harvest is pure wheat. Weeds from the enemy invariably get in. They are both allowed to grow together, awaiting sorting at the harvest.

As long as I am living in this mortal coil, weeds are part of who I am. I don't invite them, I don't want them, but there they are. I see them. I know them.

The beautiful thing is, Jesus sees only my wheat. He looks past the weeds and calls forth the wheat. My wheat rises to the light of the Son.

My mother in law had the wonderful habit of always finding the good in people. Time and again I watched as people rose to her view of their goodness, usually people who I would step over to the other side of the road to avoid. 

Jesus sees my goodness, my wheat. He steps back over the road to be with me, to help me rise to the goodness he sees in me.

Thank you Jesus for finding gold in my myrie clay, wheat among my weeds. Help me see myself rightly, as you see me, and rise to that best version of myself.

Generous and Good

Here is a list of generous men whose good works have not been forgotten. In their descendants there remains a rich inheritance born of them.
Eccl.44:10,11

Generosity and good works leave an indelible mark. Where? On future generations.

Today is the feast of Saint Joachim and Saint Anne, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary of whom tradition says were people of generosity and goodness. We may not know much of them directly as the Bible is silent about them but we can draw much of their character by what we know of their daughter. 

What can people draw of my character from my children and grandchildren? My responsibility is to witness generosity and goodness before my children. These are virtues that are absorbed not forced. 

Holy Spirit, inspire in me generosity and goodness today. Saints Joachim and Anne, please pray for me.

 

Soften the Heart

He said, ‘Imagine a sower going out to sow.

Mt.13:3

Jesus tells his well known parable of the sower. The Word of God, the seeds, is sown into the hearts of the people, the ground. The seed is constantly good. The ground varies. 

My heart had to be made soft before I could receive God's Word. God used a Marriage Encounter Weekend to change my heart of stone to soft, rich soil. As I fell in love with my wife all over again, my love affair with Jesus also started. 

Here lies a masterful lesson on evangelistion. Soften the heart before throwing the seed. This invariably involves investing in relationships, which takes time. However, it's time well spent.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth. Amen.

Timing

The Pharisees went out and began to plot against Jesus, discussing how to destroy him. Jesus knew this and withdrew from the district.
Mt.12:14,15

Jesus knows he has a death warrant against him. He hides, not to avoid death but to ensure the right timing of it.

Jesus hides from the plotting Pharisees. The time has not yet arrived when he will march resolutely up and submit to them. Like everything he does, Jesus' timing is perfect. 

I'm reminded of Ecclesiastes 3:1-11,"There is a time for every purpose under heaven." The skill is determining the season correctly. I'm in a different space than I was a year ago, a month, a day. I'm faced with choices today. When to push forward, when to hold back. When to stand and when to withdraw. When to fight, when to let it pass. 

The only common denominator is love. In each season the imperative is to do the loving thing, even when it can look unloving at the time. 

This is where the Holy Spirit steps in. It takes the gifts of knowledge, wisdom and prophecy to correctly determine the season, to get the timing right.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth. Amen.

Rest for My Soul

I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 
Mt.11:29

Jesus spreads his arms to the crowds inviting them to come. Come to what? Come to what is our deepest longing, rest for our souls. 

When I rest my body I feel great. But, when I rest my soul I feel sublime. I feel Jesus' embracing arms cradling me. This deepest rest is found in gentleness and humility. No pressure, no expectations. Just sweet, deep rest. 

Jesus, I take up your offer. Here are my heavy burdens. They are now yours. In their place I receive your rest for my soul. 

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth.

A Mere Child

Jesus exclaimed, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children.'
Mt.11:25

Jesus highlights that cleverness is not essential for understanding. Comprehension comes from a childlike faith. 

My conversion ground to a halt when I tried to understand everything. Thank God my puny brain eventually gave up and I simply said, "I believe." Then I understood.

Does this mean I am to stop reading, studying, and learning? Of course not. They all expand my understanding, but my understanding always comes from my childlike faith. 

God chose the foolish to shame the wise so that no one can boast.

Lord Jesus, in your kingdom less always means more. Keep me humble, keep me small, keep me a mere child that I may never boast.
Saint Therese of Lisieux, please pray for me.

 

Come Holy Spirit

It is not you who will be speaking; the Spirit of your Father will be speaking in you.
Mt.10:20

Jesus commissions the twelve for their first  mission trip, warning they will face opposition, both from without and from within. But even though he will not be with them, they will not be alone. The Holy Spirit will be within them.

Nothing has changed. Opposition to the Good News is still evident. However, the promise is the same also. We are not alone. The Holy Spirit is within us. 

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle in them the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created,
and you shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray.

O God, who have taught the hearts of the faithful
by the light of the Holy Spirit,
grant that in the same Spirit we may be truly wise
and ever rejoice in his consolation.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Mercy Triumph

I tell you solemnly, on the day of Judgement it will not go as hard with the land of Sodom and Gomorrah as with that town.
Mt.10:15

Jesus commissions the twelve to go and proclaim the Good News while relying totally on the people to whom they are ministering for their physical needs. Those who accept them and welcome their message will be blessed. Those who reject them fall under a curse.

Judgement day will come. It's not dwelt on too much these days, but Jesus said it so we'd better take heed. In a way it's a relief. I don't have to make judgement, in fact I'm commanded not to. I can leave judgement up to God, the only one who can. My role is to beg for God's mercy to triumph over judgement, mercy not only for perpetrators of evil but also for myself who stands among their number.

Jesus, may your mercy triumph over judgement. I place my trust in you.
Saint Benedict, please pray for us.

 

Go Proclaim

And as you go, proclaim...
Mt.10:7

Jesus is commissioning the twelve for their first mission trip. The mission's brief was brief. Go, proclaim.

Jesus initially instructed that the God News be proclaimed just to "the lost sheep of the House of Israel." However, later the Church was compelled by the Holy Spirit to tell the Good News to the pagans as well. The missionary field changed but the basic instruction didn't. Go, proclaim was and has always been the mission of the Church. 

So, how's my going and proclaiming? The final night of the Alpha Course sponsored by our parish is happening this week. What a great vehicle to "Go, proclaim!"  Time to pray in another one...

Jesus, thank you for the great privilege to go and proclaim. Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.

Stretcher Bearer

A number of tax collectors and sinners came to sit at the table with Jesus and his disciples. 
Mt.9:10

Jesus attracted the very ones that repelled the pious Pharisees. The only difference between the sinners and the Pharisees appears to be that the sinners acknowledged their sin and their need for Jesus. The Pharisees. didn't.

Jesus drew sinners to himself. Today's Church has lost that charism. The very ones that Jesus came for are repelled, rightly or wrongly, from our pews. They smell the odor of judgement oozing out from our doors. 

We need to regain the virtue of loving acceptance and become the hospital in the field of battle that Pope Francis is calling us to be. 

To that end, I need to become a stretcher bearer in the field of battle.

Saint Matthew, please pray for us.

Authority

But to prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,’ – he said to the paralytic – ‘get up, and pick up your bed and go off home.’ And the man got up and went home. 
Mt.9:6,7

Jesus demonstrates his authority to forgive sins by doing the apparently more difficult thing, healing a cripple. What this more clearly shows is that Jesus wants to give complete healing, in body, soul and spirit.

Thank you Jesus for the healing you have done and are doing in my life. You are the source of my freedom and joy.
Saint Philip Neri, please pray for me.

Save Us Lord!

Save us, Lord, we are going down!
Mt.8:25

The disciples, experienced fishermen, succumbed to fear of the storm sinking their boat. Their prayer is simple and direct... "Save us Lord, we are going down!"

Short prayers are the best. There is honesty in a short prayer that can get lost in a long one. And, a short prayer is enough for Jesus. He rebukes the wind and waves, the storm disappears. 

Jesus is either Lord of all, or not at all. Nothing I face today will be a surprise to Jesus. I simply keep my eyes on him, in faith, and all will be well.

Jesus, even the winds and waves obey you. I place my trust in you.
Saint Peter who walked on the water, pray for me.