30 September 2023 - receiving the word

Today's Readings

(Audio)

While they were all amazed at his every deed

The disciples were caught up in the amazement, the success, the general aura of positivity and popularity that seemed to surround Jesus. It is telling that it was particularly at that moment that Jesus began to explain about his coming passion to the disciples, that he was "to be handed over to men". It was as though he saw their inflated enthusiasm and wanted to temper it with a dose of the reality to come. If they expected that the ministry of Jesus would always only be amazing deeds they would not be ready when the dark hour of his passion arrived.

Pay attention to what I am telling you.

The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.

He instructed them to pay attention because he knew that their attention was still mostly focused on basking on the success they had seen thus far. Peter, James, and John, in particular had just witnessed the transfiguration, but all of them had seen great things and mighty deeds. In order to process what Jesus was about to tell them would take some effort on their part to be present with Jesus there in that moment and not lost and distracted in memories of the past, however grand.

But they did not understand this saying;

its meaning was hidden from them

so that they should not understand it,

What Jesus attempted to convey at that time was such a departure from their messianic expectations, and so apparently out of line with the trajectory of his mission so far, that what he told them didn't make sense to them. They were so lost in consolation that it barely registered. Yet part of the truth Jesus wanted to convey was in fact conveyed, although it appeared to remain below the conscious awareness of the disciples.

and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.

Why would the disciples have been afraid to ask if they didn't secretly intuit the meaning, at least in part? They hadn't applied the focused attention to receive the word of Jesus when it was first spoken. Now they had misgivings, unstated, but lurking ominously within them, threatening to color future experiences. But this partial reception on an unconscious level wasn't really what Jesus wanted to communicate. He wasn't merely trying to provoke them to fear or to doubt in him. He wanted them to understand that the hardships he was to face were a part of the plan, so that, rather than those things being a cause for fear, the disciples could remain confident no matter how dark things became.

Today's Gospel has a blueprint for a mature reception of divine revelation. It begins with the directive to pay attention, to not got lost either in warm fuzzies or fear, uncertainty, and doubt. This means recognizing that there is a difference between our present emotional state and what the word of God is meant to be convey. It means letting the word of God shape us and our perception of things rather than the other way around.

Of course it is the case that our ability to pay attention is fairly limited. Our ability to be distracted by our own circumstances and concerns is immense. But this isn't a dealbreaker when it comes to receiving and understanding the word of God. We take the second step of mature reception when, at times when we ourselves don't understand, we ask about it. To not ask is sometimes learned helplessness on our part, implying that the word of God is utterly beyond us. But this helplessness disregards the possibility of divine help, given both directly and indirectly, by the Spirit, and through those others who have a special teaching gift. Not asking is sometimes implicit doubt that there is not actually a good answer to be found, and fear about confronting this doubt is sometimes why we do not ask. We are afraid there may not be an answer. But of course there must be an answer if God has truly revealed himself to us. Not asking is sometimes a result of being afraid of the answer, because receiving that answer might require a change on our part, and, quite frankly, we're comfortable where we are. Let us try our best to pay attention to what Jesus is saying, to be present with him as he makes himself present to us. And let us be bold and mature about asking when we don't understand, about making ourselves in some measure responsible to ensure that misunderstandings and unconscious misgivings do not linger.

The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.

If we fail to be present during the phases when Jesus reveals himself to us we will have greater difficulty actually following him in challenging times. When Jesus was arrested it was said of the disciples that "they all left him and fled" (see Mark 14:50). We know that John at least did eventually circle back in order to be present at the cross. But we may yet wonder what difference could have been made, what comfort the disciples might have been able to offer to Jesus if they had trusted him enough to be near to him even when the dark hour arrived. Could we perhaps become such good friends to Jesus? It is precisely in receiving his revelation that we are transformed to be friends of this sort.

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you (see John 15:15).

The word of God can give us certainty and hope even in the face of the most apparently hopeless circumstances. We can learn that what was promised to Zechariah is now a reality for us:

But I will be for her an encircling wall of fire, says the LORD, and I will be the glory in her midst.

Today is the day when the Lord himself dwells in our midst, when many nations have in fact joined themselves to the Lord. There should be nothing that can overwhelm the confidence this reality is meant to impart.

He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,

he guards them as a shepherd guards his flock.

Newsboys - This I Know

29 September 2023 - God of angel armies

Today's Readings

(Audio)

"Here is a true child of Israel.

There is no duplicity in him."

Nathanael was ready to dismiss Jesus as a byproduct of backwater Nazareth, from which, he believed, no good could come. When Jesus spoke this praise he seemed suspicious at first, asking, "How do you know me?", because he believed Jesus may merely have been attempting to flatter him so as to win him over. But even by this response he was proving the point of Jesus that there was no duplicity in him. He was not one to be won over merely with praise or kind words. His desire to find the messiah ran deeper than that.

Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.

When Jesus saw Nathanael under the fig tree he saw him in a moment of absolute sincerity, a private moment within Nathanael's heart that was, he knew, between himself and God alone. And yet Jesus saw and was aware of this desire within him. He saw Nathanael's longing for the age of the messiah, when each person would sit under his own fig tree (see Micah 4:4). Nathanael himself may not have felt that he lived up to what Jesus said about him, may have been teetering on the edge of hope or despair about this dream could be realized. It may be that Jesus spoke more in line with Nathanael's potential, with how his hope could and was in fact meant to be realized in Jesus himself. If this was the case he was calling things that were not (yet) as though they were (see Romans 4:17), speaking a new and transformed Nathanael into being, because he was able to assure him of a hope that did not disappoint (see Romans 5:5)

"Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."

Nathanael felt so seen, so perfectly understood, that he was moved to let go of his inhibitions and confess the one who had previously seemed an implausible candidate for messiah to be the "Son of God" and the "King of Israel". This was about more than the fact that Jesus knew where he was sitting. It was that he perfectly understood the desire of his heart as only the one capable of fulfilling that desire could understand.

And he said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you,

you will see heaven opened

and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

What did it mean for Jesus to be the Son of God and the King of Israel? Nathanael no doubt had some vague idea. But whatever that idea was it would prove to be trivial compared to the reality. Jesus would bring about a union of heaven and earth, humanity and God, that transcended all expectations. No doubt hints had been given, such as the vision of Jacob where angels ascended and descended on a later as he slept and dreamed. But only in Jesus would the reality be made manifest. The age of the messiah was an age that would not be defined merely by human armies of Israel succeeding in their conquests. Rather, it would be marked by the triumph of the heavenly hosts over the power of darkness.

The huge dragon, the ancient serpent,

who is called the Devil and Satan,

who deceived the whole world,

was thrown down to earth

The throne of Jesus was one which he shared not simply with the kings of the Davidic line, but with the Ancient One. Those who ministered to him were not just men and women but all of the hosts of heaven. His ultimate triumph was brought about by his own Blood. Just as the blood of the passover sacrifice protected those in Egypt from the angel of death so too does the Blood of the Lamb avail us of the protection of the hosts of heaven. As the blood of the old sacrifice brought victory over Egypt so too does this Precious Blood of Our Lord make possible our victory over the "accuser of our brothers".

I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart,

for you have heard the words of my mouth;

in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;

Chris Tomlin - Whom Shall I Fear (God Of Angel Armies)

28 September 2023 - an invitation to rebuild

Today's Readings

(Audio)

Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening,

and he was greatly perplexed because some were saying,

"John has been raised from the dead";

Herod had an ambivalent relationship to John while he was still alive. On the one hand he didn't appreciate the way in which John criticized his unlawful marriage. On the other, he liked to listen to him speak. On the one hand he wanted to suppress the voice of conscience manifested to him in John the Baptist. On the other, there was something about how he talked that was interesting and hard to ignore, something like a broader horizon of imagination than that of Herod, which seemed to be limited mostly to sensual pleasure. In killing John Herod had at least hoped to put this inner tension to rest. But the trouble was that John was just a representative, speaking to him the words that God would have him hear.

But Herod said, "John I beheaded.

Who then is this about whom I hear such things?"

And he kept trying to see him.

Herod seemed to be hoping that he could find in Jesus all of the same entertainment value he found in John the Baptist without the sting of the voice of conscience. But while Jesus had more important things to do than criticize Herod's marriage he would not be made the object of mere curiosity nor serve only as a means of entertainment. Herod sought Jesus without any real openness to change on his part. He wanted to see him without being transformed by the sight. And that lack of openness made him blind. It made it impossible for him to truly see Jesus, to recognize in him what it was that made him utterly fascinating to others.

Now thus says the LORD of hosts:

Consider your ways!

You have sown much, but have brought in little;

you have eaten, but have not been satisfied;

You have drunk, but have not been exhilarated;

have clothed yourselves, but not been warmed;

And whoever earned wages

earned them for a bag with holes in it.

Because he would not listen to conscience when it spoke Herod found himself seeking his own pleasure and ignoring God, just like the people in today's first reading. He was similarly dissatisfied, but did not know where to turn. Herod himself was meant to be a house of God, but refused to recognized that that house which he was meant to be lay in ruins. Had he been open he would have heard in both John and Jesus an invitation to rebuild, to himself become a place where right praise was offered to God.

Thus says the LORD of hosts:

Consider your ways!

Go up into the hill country;

bring timber, and build the house

That I may take pleasure in it

and receive my glory, says the LORD.

We may not go so far as to kill the Lord's messengers, but we still may sometimes try to suppress the voice of conscience that speaks in our hearts. We do this not only when we refuse the Lord flat out, but even when we employ delaying tactics, saying things like, "The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD". The issue with not responding is that it causes a hardening to come upon our hearts that make it more difficult to respond in the future, like the Gentiles Paul descried who "became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened" (see Romans 1:21). 

If we hear the voice of God, if his prophet is speaking his words to us, then let us not delay, but rather respond at once. Simple curiosity is not enough to bring about transformation if at a deeper level we remain closed even to the idea of change. Our God is a consuming fire (see Hebrews 12:29) and it is impossible to truly approach him without being transformed thereby.

Dan Schutte - City Of God

27 September 2023 - the call

Today's Readings

(Audio)

Jesus summoned the Twelve and gave them power and authority

over all demons and to cure diseases

Jesus had himself become famous because "he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes" (see Matthew 7:29). They said of him, "with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out" (see Luke 4:36). He now gave his apostles a share in his power and authority, equipping them to proclaim the Kingdom of God. This was the way it continued to be proclaimed by Paul, who did not rely on "plausible words of wisdom" but rather "in demonstration of the Spirit and of power" (see First Corinthians 2:4). Words of any sort could be second guessed, but mighty deeds were more difficult to dismiss, although people still tried. Yet they were meant to recognize that "if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (see Luke 11:20).

and he sent them to proclaim the Kingdom of God

and to heal the sick.

It is not the case that this manifestation of power and authority was a short lived burst in the life of the early Church, that the Spirit was massively present for a few early generations, and that things have by now mostly returned to normal. We cannot concede, for instance, that it was more necessary then than now that there be such demonstrations. Nor has the teaching of the Church even tolerated the idea that miracles ceased with the age of the apostles. If we don't see these things very often in our day it is likely because we have become disconnected from the source. We all receive "the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good" (see First Corinthians 12:7) in our baptism and have it strengthened in us when we are confirmed. But this is a gift we cannot use merely to entertain ourselves. It is meant to correspond to the call of Jesus to go out and proclaim the good news in our own spheres of life. It is meant to equip us for a task. But if we ignore that there is such a task, if we do not listen for such a call, we won't know when the gifts that correspond with that call are to be used. If we remain connected to Jesus and hear him when he sends us out it is much more likely that miracles will attend the proclamation according to his will.

He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey,

neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money,

and let no one take a second tunic.

There are times in life when we are called to follow Jesus without any contingency plans, to hear his word, and go where he sends us, even if we feel unprepared. It is not the case that we are called to undertake reckless endeavors according to our own will. Neither does Jesus himself always call us to go out with nothing extra. But he does do so sometimes. And we must therefore not rule out that fact that such a call might really be from him a priori. The things of this world, that give us stability in this life, can become a substitute for trust in God. And we sometimes need to put trust in God into a very direct sort of practice in order that he can show himself to be faithful in our lives.

Whatever house you enter, stay there and leave from there.

When we are on a mission from Jesus we can't allow ourselves to become distracted by finding the most comfortable house or the one with the best breakfast. That is a vacation, rather than a mission, which is not in itself a bad thing. But if we expect the mission to be a vacation we will tend to find ourselves too distracted to be effective. We will then prioritize our comfort over the need we discover and the welcome reception we encounter.

And as for those who do not welcome you,

when you leave that town,

shake the dust from your feet in testimony against them.

One thing many of us are not ready to experience is rejection. And an inordinate fear of rejection might keep us from obeying Jesus when he sends us out to proclaim his Kingdom. We might tend to expect that if we did everything perfectly we would only receive a positive reception. But Jesus himself explained that we will sometimes be rejected. Yet, because of the mystery of free will such situations are not to be avoided, and may one day lead to more than the limited part of the situation we are permitted to see.

The message with which we have been entrusted something for which every human heart secretly longs, something even greater from what Ezra celebrated in today's first reading:

And now, but a short time ago, mercy came to us from the LORD, our God,

who left us a remnant and gave us a stake in his holy place;

thus our God has brightened our eyes

and given us relief in our servitude.

Newsboys - Go

26 September 2023 - faith and family

Today's Readings

(Audio)

The mother of Jesus and his brothers came to him

but were unable to join him because of the crowd.

Jesus had said anyone who preferred there blood relations to the Kingdom of God was not worthy of him (see Matthew 10:37). Here we see him in some way practicing what he preached, putting the work of the Kingdom even before his obligations to his mother and his cousins. It was not the case that he did not love his mother dearly. He was by no means insinuating that there was any room for laxity in the command to honor one's parents. But it was the case that he came to earth to create a new way of relating to one another that transcended the bonds of blood. This new relationship had its basis in faith and was the reasons why Gentiles as well as Jews could inherit the things promised to Abraham.

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham (see Galatians 3:7).

Mary was related to Jesus both by blood and as one who had heard and responded to the word of God. She heard the call of the archangel Gabriel and responded with her fiat, giving herself entirely to the will of God. Because she was so connected to her Son by faith she was also able to become the mother of those followers of his who became his brothers and sisters. We hear this at the cross when the beloved disciple takes Mary to be his mother. We hear of it again in the book of Revelation:

Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus (see Revelation 12:17).

Being related to Jesus by faith sometimes means sacrificing natural inclinations and priorities to the greater good of the Kingdom. Mary did this her entire life, from the time she found Jesus teaching in the temple, to the incident in today's Gospel, all the way to taking up her position near his cross. It was this robust response of faith that qualified her to be the mother of Jesus by faith, and in turn the new Eve, the true mother of all the living. But it did not, we assume always feel good in the moment, even for one as pure and perfect as Mary. It was not personal sinful inclination that made her desire the natural goods which she was forced to surrender in favor of greater spiritual goods. It was the fact that she was so pure and perfect, and yet living in a fallen world, that this friction existed. After all, her pure heart was born into a world, that needed her Son to be sacrificed for its salvation. 

We who are by no means anywhere near Mary's purity and perfection are bound to encounter the sacrifices entailed in putting Jesus before all else. We will be able to meet these challenges without despair if we maintain a perspective of faith and keep our eyes on the expansive vista of life in the Kingdom rather than allowing our pain to narrow our focus to life in this world. Mary always maintained such a perspective, as we can see expressed when she sang her Magnificat.

for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed (see Luke 1:48).

Jesus is about the business of building a transnational Kingdom where all are invited to be related to him by faith. He is building a new and spiritual temple where people everywhere are able to take part in worship in Spirit and truth (see John 4:23-24). As much as the dedication of the temple described in the book of Ezra was a cause for joy, how much more is this new reality Jesus is bringing about? It is even here and now a glimpse of the eternal weight of glory for which all of our present affliction is but a preparation (see Second Corinthians 4:17).

I rejoiced because they said to me,

"We will go up to the house of the LORD."

And now we have set foot

within your gates, O Jerusalem.

John Michael Talbot - Exodus 15

25 September 2023 - lightheaded

Today's Readings

(Audio)

No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel

or sets it under a bed;

rather, he places it on a lampstand

so that those who enter may see the light.

Jesus Christ was himself the light that came into the world, potentially enlightening everyone (see John 1:9). By his cross and resurrection he "delivered us from the domain of darkness" (see Colossians 1:13) and qualified us "to share in the inheritance of the saints in light" (see Colossians 1:12). Our ongoing transformation is described as having the eyes of our hearts enlightened (see Ephesians 1:18). This is possible because "God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (see Second Corinthian 4:6). We are therefore called to walk "as children of light" (see Ephesians 5:8) and to even wear this light as a protective armor (see Romans 13:12).

The disciples would most probably have been tempted to hide their light at various times when it seemed to become a liability. Most of them did in fact do so when the dark hour (see Luke 22:53) of the cross arrived. We too are sometimes tempted to remain hidden, to keep the light a secret so as to not disturb those around us. But if we insist on hiding our light we risk smothering it. If we refuse to share it, it may grow very dim within us. The point of light is not only to illuminate our private lives, the inside of a vessel, but rather the world. Those in darkness may seem comfortable, may even seem to be enjoying themselves. But what truly lurks hidden and unexposed in darkness is by no means benign. We ought to know how good the light is from how it has transformed us. And this in turn should motivate us to shine for all we're worth.

For there is nothing hidden that will not become visible,

and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light.

Right now is the time to choose the light. The coming of the dawn is inevitable. But it will be a much more welcome sight for who have made themselves ready to welcome it by cooperating with divine grace. In the book of Revelation we read that "the night will be no more", and that "the Lord God will be their light" (see Revelations 22:5). We may find that image a little difficult. No darkness at all? No place to hide? No space that is entirely our own secret space? Let's begin to allow the transformation to take place now so that we will be ready to welcome its final culmination. 

Take care, then, how you hear.

To anyone who has, more will be given,

and from the one who has not,

even what he seems to have will be taken away.

Let us listen and truly hear so that we may be transformed. We are invited to join the procession of building God's house, not with "silver, gold, goods, and cattle" or any other perishable things, but with ourselves as living stones.

Newsboys - Shine

24 September 2023 - fair pay

Today's Readings

(Audio)

Going out about five o'clock,

the landowner found others standing around, and said to them,

'Why do you stand here idle all day?'

We see a recurring theme in the parables of Jesus, that it is never too late, up until the very last moment of our life in this world, whether the moment of our death or when he himself comes again in glory. We see, for instance, the prodigal son coming home to a celebration even after spending wasted years squandering his inheritance (see Luke 15:11-32). We think also of the first son who at first refused his father's command to go and work in the vineyard but later "changed his mind and went" (see Matthew 21:28-29). We are meant to appreciate the Lord's generosity and mercy, that even the good thief could come to faith as he died on the cross next to Christ, and could that day be with him in paradise (see Luke 23:43).

So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more,

but each of them also got the usual wage.

And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying,

'These last ones worked only one hour,

and you have made them equal to us,

who bore the day's burden and the heat.'

Rather than being glad to see the Lord's mercy and his generosity we sometimes grumble against him, like those in this parable and like that generation that grumbled against Moses in the desert. The problem is apparently envy, the uncomfortable idea that someone somewhere has it easier than we do, or is getting more for less. This might arise when we misconstrue our own difficulties along similar lines as bearing the day's burden and the heat. Or like the generation of the exodus we might complain that God's provisioning of miraculous bread strikes us as monotonous. There might be something real underlying each complaint, but the larger part is a matter of perspective.

'Why do you stand here idle all day?'

They answered, 'Because no one has hired us.'

Did those called first really wish to spend their day idle and without purpose, up until the very last? Did those who left Egypt really wish to return even if it meant being slaves? Of course not. Did anyone really desire the life that up until the last minute consisted in "standing around"? Being engaged in the labor of the vineyard was meant to be a blessing. It was in and of itself the master sharing his own life with all those who would hear his call. We get the impression that the master was working the hardest of them all, going into the marketplace at dawn, nine, noon, three, and five in search of laborers. We would not be surprised to discover that he himself was working alongside the others in the vineyard during the intervals between his hiring trips since he was so convinced of the goodness and the importance of the endeavor.

So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more,

but each of them also got the usual wage.

They were paid what they were promised. It was enough. It was the right amount. It only now seemed to them to be too little because of envy and ego-drama. They were so self-involved now that they could no longer appreciate that which once seemed sufficient to motivate a day of labor. Thus we see both the twin dangers of comparison and complaint, and how they can wreak havoc on what might have otherwise been a joyful mission. It was above all their own perception of the situation that made them feel themselves to be "last".

I am caught between the two.

I long to depart this life and be with Christ,

for that is far better.

Paul knew better than to compare himself with others or to envy them. He already saw himself as late to the party, as "one untimely born" (see First Corinthians 15:8), well aware that his current situation was due entirely to unmerited grace. This awareness and thankfulness was what made him accept either much longer labor in the vineyard or a more immediate final reward. The fact that one could come late to the party did not mean he wished simply to cash out his chips and go home. He knew on some level that was better. But he also knew that working on the vineyard was so much more than bearing the day and the heat. It as "fruitful labor" to the degree that it was almost competitive in his mind with going home to Christ. It was no doubt this right mindset that enabled him to work "harder than any of them", by knowing that "it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me" (see First Corinthians 15:10).

Complaint and comparison will slow down our days and make the experience of the scorching sun seem unbearable. When we learn to lose ourselves in labor of the vineyard we will come to our final goal more quickly and with greater joy along the way than any who stood idle until the last. This should be a joy that we desire to share with others just as the master of the vineyard first shared it with us.

Let us leave aside merely human ways of thinking that trap us in the prison of our egos. The Lord's thoughts are not thoughts such as these. Let us instead by transformed by the renewal of our minds so that we can, like Paul, find joy wherever the Lord may call us.

Southborough Lane Baptist Church - We Will Magnify

23 September 2023 - good soil

Today's Readings

(Audio)

At other times in salvation history prophets described a famine "of hearing the words of the Lord" (see Amos 8:11). But in Jesus Christ God inaugurated an era of abundance, as we can see from how generously the sower sowed the seed, the seed which "is the word of God". 

The reason the sower sowed so widely and in such diverse terrain cannot be because he was careless or wasteful. On the one hand he seems to know the likely results of scattering seed on the path, rocky ground, or among the thorns. On the other hand he must have believed that even in difficult scenarios growth was possible. He must have warned against the difficult conditions one might encounter because such a warning might avail for the growing plants. Without this additional word to illuminate the danger the plants might succumb to said danger. But if their growth took account of it they might yet reach full maturity.

And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew,

it produced fruit a hundredfold.

Why mention the good soil? Is it only to highlight some lucky seeds who happen to find themselves in perfect and challenge free growing conditions? Not likely. There aren't very many people whose circumstances are this ideal. More likely it was to highlight the value of good soil as an ideal, contrasted with the real world conditions in which we often find ourselves. When we realize how valuable are the things that make for our growth we will not be as likely to neglect them. When we realize how dangerous thorns, rocks, and a lack of root can be, we will not simply settle ourselves among them without concern.

Plants grow instinctively toward the sun and put down roots insistently, sometimes even breaking through rocks to do so. But we are creatures whose growth is directed by a conscious rather than an instinctual awareness. This means we may sometimes be less insistent when we encounter difficulties. But it also means that we have more freedom at such times. When we encounter obstacles we have more options and more alternatives from which to choose, by which to surpass limits, to grow and bear fruit.

We must prioritize putting down roots. This means that Jesus himself must be more than a passing fancy for us. Mixing metaphors, he is the vine and we are meant to be his branches. It is not just brushing against him briefly but relying on him continually that can nourish us. 

We should know that we will be opposed in our growth by our spiritual enemy, the Devil. If we know this we won't leave ourselves vulnerable to spiritual death through simply carelessness. 

If we recognize thorns for what they are we will find enough open space to grow. The trouble comes when we don't recognize the way that anxieties and riches and pleasures of life are actually choking us and killing us little by little and complacently settle among them.

But as for the seed that fell on rich soil,

they are the ones who, when they have heard the word,

embrace it with a generous and good heart,

and bear fruit through perseverance.

Let us look again at the rich soil. We note that what it describes is anything but luck and fortunate circumstances. It describes mature growth that is possible when we have awareness of potential pitfalls. It does not say, 'Lacking obstacles it bears fruit without struggle'. Rather, good hearts that, by the grace of sower, persist and persevere, transforming the terrain in which they find themselves, whatever it may be, making even deserts bear fruit.

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;

the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus;

it shall blossom abundantly

and rejoice with joy and singing (see Isaiah 35:1-2).

The light toward which we grow is something greater than sunlight, something more than we can ask or imagine, that eye has not seen and ear has not heard, which is now the source of our life, but which will one day be made manifest. 

until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ

that the blessed and only ruler

will make manifest at the proper time,

the King of kings and Lord of lords,

who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light,

and whom no human being has seen or can see.

John B Miller - Speak Lord I'm Listening

22 September 2023 - the journey

Today's Readings

(Audio)

Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,

preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.

At first the Kingdom was proclaimed only where Jesus was present. But from early on he was accompanied by the Twelve who watched him and learned from him how to share the good news. A support network of women also accompanied him, helping in ways that were perhaps largely hidden and behind the scenes. 

They must all have come to understand early on that they shouldn't suppose "religion to be a means of gain" in terms of worldly riches, as other religious figures in his day may be supposed to have done. They learned this first of all from the example of Jesus, who was not himself wealthy. The Twelve learned it more deeply as they were sent out two by two without anything except a staff and sandals. The women proved they understood it by providing for Jesus out of their resources.

Many of them were drawn to follow Jesus because he had healed them of evil spirits and infirmities. But they must have quickly understood that following Jesus was not going to lead them to every worldly blessing they could imagine. Instead, it would challenge them, demanding that they be able to hold the things of this world lightly enough that they could let them go when the Kingdom needed to take precedence. What Jesus provided was not necessarily every desire of theirs as those desires existed before they knew him. Rather, he provided for a reshaping of their hearts, and a healing of their desires, that made contentment and peace possible.

For we brought nothing into the world,

just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it.

If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that.

Jesus absolutely did do marvelous things in their lives, things which gave them the motivation to follow him many arduous and difficult journeys. But these were not the fulfillment desires that were merely superficial. They were the restoration of the divine image within them, making them able to become like Jesus, and making them want to do so.

We might never consciously admit it but we may still secretly expect that following Jesus will bless and perfect our circumstances in this world. But expecting this is setting our expectations too low and leads us to frustration. It makes us run the risk of rebellion whenever we encounter privation in our circumstances. Jesus has something better to offer than the desires of ours which are often "foolish and harmful" and end only in "ruin and destruction". 

Whoever teaches something different

and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ

and the religious teaching

is conceited, understanding nothing

In lieu of perfecting the world, when we realize that is impossible, we sometimes feel like we might as well at least argue about it. But we should try to let the teaching of Jesus control, not only our hearts and minds, but also our words and speech. Let us learn to speak according to the eternal truths of his word rather than our own limited timebound perspectives. Let us focus on "righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness" so that we don't succumb to "envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds". 

Just as Jesus journeyed with his disciples so ought we to think of ours lives as journeys following him where he himself leads us. Let us learn from him the secret of contentment and peace, which are possible because he himself first heals us and puts faith into our hearts. As we see the way he himself confidently confessed God's word and proclaimed the Kingdom may we too learn to trust and proclaim the promises of God.

Newsboys - Wherever We Go

21 September 2023 - follow me

Today's Readings

(Audio)

As Jesus passed by,

he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.

He said to him, "Follow me."

And he got up and followed him.

Matthew is easy to see as an archetype for radical conversion, making a complete break with his former way of life to follow Jesus. But this makes it harder for many of us to relate to him. Even for those of us who had such a conversion it may have been long ago, and the memories of our own customs posts that preceded that conversion might be distant and fading. But if we recognize that conversion is not merely a one time event and that we are called to continual growth and transformation perhaps we can find Matthew to be more useful as an example and a role model than we guessed at first.

What is our customs post? What is the game we are playing according to the rules of this world in order to satisfy ourselves? As it may have been with Matthew this may seem to us to be something necessary, our only way to put food on the table. Or it may seem necessary in some lesser way, so that we could not imagine ourselves to be happy without it. Of course if we pause and step back we will realize that it has not delivered on promises of happiness or even stability. Yet the difficult thing about these customs posts is how inescapable they seem. On our own we find ourselves unable to believe in our power to escape them. Perhaps we've even tried to change in the past and failed. What we need is that which was also necessary for Matthew. We need to hear the call of Jesus.

He said to him, "Follow me."

And he got up and followed him.

Contained in the call of Jesus to Matthew was the absolute assurance on the part of Jesus that Matthew could in fact do what Jesus commanded. And this was because Jesus himself knew exactly what his call would entail and was himself perfectly able to equip him for those challenges. Further, he knew better than Matthew did that tax collecting was a dead end, and that true joy and peace could only be found in him.

While he was at table in his house,

many tax collectors and sinners came

and sat with Jesus and his disciples.

Our apparent weaknesses, blemishes, and the ugliness of the parts of our lives that are not yet converted become strengths that can be used by Jesus once we listen to his call. We tend to act more like Pharisees even after our conversion and try to hide everything that isn't already pristine and holy. But Jesus is calling us out of hiding to bring all of these things into contact with him. For in darkness sin grows in power. But exposed to his divine light healing can begin.

The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,

"Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

The degree to which Jesus was ready to celebrate was scandalous to others in his day. It did not require prior perfection to gain entrance to these feasts. It only required the desire to be near him. The Pharisees were so focused on perfection that they did not realize their need. May we not be like them, convinced that our own customs post is entirely a matter of the past. Let us instead realize our need for the divine physician. It is exactly this that qualifies us for entry to the feast.

I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.

We may worry that if we own our sickness to too great a degree that we will not "live in a manner worthy of the call" we have received. But it is actually only in our awareness of our weakness that we remember to turn to the Spirit himself for strength. It is he that knits us together as one through the bond of peace. It is Christ's own gifts, entirely unearned, that build up the body "until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ".

Chris Tomlin - I Will Follow

20 September 2023 - the divine music

Today's Readings

(Audio)

To what shall I compare the people of this generation?

What are they like?

They are like children who sit in the marketplace and call to one another,

'We played the flute for you, but you did not dance.

We sang a dirge, but you did not weep.'

How ready are we to respond to the music God is playing? It might seem mean-spirited of these children to not respond to the effort made by the musicians. Yet it is easy to imagine that when the flute was played they were in the mood for something else, something sad or serious. And it is easy to imagine that the dirge was also played at exactly the wrong moment to correspond with their natural mood. How likely were these children to turn aside from play and games and fun just because someone started singing a dirge?

When we realize that it may not be so obvious as we first assume that we ought to immediately try to correspond with the divine music, when we realize that there are many impediments and distractions to doing so, we will not be so quick to dismiss the people of that generation while giving ourselves a pass. How then are we like those unresponsive children? 

We sometimes get caught up in the sadness of this world, tending toward death, and thus do not resonate with the eternal promises of the Kingdom. In doing so we mourn as those who have no hope and at such times find the music of such hope repugnant. 

At other times we get caught up in the joys of sin. We then try to eternalize pleasures that can only be temporary. The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life play their own hypnotic tune whereas the dirge of the call to take up our cross and follow Jesus feels abrasive, unfair, and unnecessary.

If we insist on sitting our course by our mood we will find ourselves choosing according to our base instincts. These choices will seldom correspond to the call God. Perhaps their will be some apparent occasional overlap for briefs moments when what we happen to feel at the moment lines up with God's plan. But if we ourselves remain in firm control such overlap will be short lived. We must surrender ourselves to the music that comes from outside of ourselves. 

For John the Baptist came neither eating food nor drinking wine,

and you said, 'He is possessed by a demon.'

The Son of Man came eating and drinking and you said,

'Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,

a friend of tax collectors and sinners.'

We might wonder if to dance to music when we aren't in the mood will remain unnatural and difficult. But when we allow ourselves to become enchanted and taken by the music God is playing we will find that more and more we desire to dance to his tune. We will sense a deeper structure and an eternal logic to his music that we couldn't find in the variability of our whims. 

But wisdom is vindicated by all her children.

Let us become the children of wisdow, dancing to her tune, responding to her call to come to the feast.

Wisdom has built her house.

She has carved out her seven pillars.

She has prepared her meat.

She has mixed her wine.

She has set her table (see Proverbs 9:1-2).

The place where this feast is found is "the house of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth". This is the place where wisdom leads, the place from which her music emanates, and where true joy may be found. The feast is thus Jesus himself. What more could he have given?

He has given food to those who fear him;

he will forever be mindful of his covenant.

David Ruis - We Will Dance

19 September 2023 - as for an only son

Today's Readings

(Audio)

As he drew near to the gate of the city,

a man who had died was being carried out,

the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.

Jesus was the only son of Mary, herself most likely a widow at the time of his crucifixion. Could this woman have brought to mind his own destiny? Was the pity that moved his heart for her even greater because of what he felt for his own mother? Perhaps his love for Mary here overflowed to others, who were themselves, at least potentially, his mother and his brothers (see Luke 8:21), if they would keep his word.

When the Lord saw her,

he was moved with pity for her and said to her,

“Do not weep.”

In the earthly ministry of Jesus there was a preview of things to come, of the time when those who weep will laugh (see Luke 6:21), the time when every tear will be wiped from every eye (see Revelation 21:4).

He stepped forward and touched the coffin;

at this the bearers halted,

and he said, “Young man, I tell you, arise!”

The resurrection of the young man looks forward to the day when we too shall here the voice of Jesus calling us to wake from death and to live with him forever.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live (see John 5:25).

Even now, those who hear the word of Jesus are raised from spiritual death to new life in the Spirit. Those thus raised are assured that even if they do face bodily death someday, as most likely they will, they will nevertheless live again for eternity. We are meant to be among the ones who hear his words and live, dead women and men, and yet speaking the praises of the Lord who has raised us up. We must not, therefore, persist in our former death-directed ways life. 

We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life (see Romans 6:4).

The dead man sat up and began to speak,

and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Jesus, after raising us to new life, desires to entrust us to our mother, who is both Mary and, by extension, the Church. He is like Elijah who raised the son of the widow at Zarephath and gave him to his mother (see First Kings 17:17-24), yet greater. Elijah pleaded with God. The son of this widow at Nain was raised at the mere touch of Christ. And Jesus continues to perform this same miracle, spiritually and mystically, in the lives of all who come to believe in him.

We are not all called to be deacons, or to take up other official ministries within the Church, but we are all called to hold "fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience". This is another way of saying that we are called to continue to live the new life we have received in Christ, navigating the same familiar world, but with new minds and hearts. If we have instead returned to our tombs and hung signs outside that say 'Do Not Disturb' let us again hear him calling us forth. Let us allow ourselves to be given into the arms of his mother so that she can help us to grow and become like her Son.

Ike Ndolo - Awake, O Sleeper

18 September 2023 - only say the word

Today's Readings

(Audio)

The centurion heard something about Jesus that gave him hope for his ailing slave. What precisely he heard and what he knew is not clear. But whatever it was, it moved him to a greater faith than many who were much nearer to Jesus. 

When he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to him,

asking him to come and save the life of his slave.

He sent the elders to Jesus because he did not himself feel deserving to go to him. He was like the man in the parable about prayer who "standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" (see Luke 18:13). 

"He deserves to have you do this for him,

for he loves our nation and he built the synagogue for us."

His friends pleaded for him on his merits. But he himself didn't want Jesus to believe that he thought he was deserving because of these works he had done, however good they may have been. He sent more friends to correct the misconception, to insist on his unworthiness before Jesus. There must have been something in what he had heard about Jesus that made it clear to him that he was more than an ordinary teacher or healer. There was in Jesus an authority over reality itself in the same way that one soldier might have authority over others. As a soldier ought not to presume upon his superiors, how much less, this centurion must have reasoned, should he presume upon Jesus himself?

Lord, do not trouble yourself,

for I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof.

Therefore, I did not consider myself worthy to come to you;

One amazing aspect of this humility is that by the centurion, by not insisting on making himself the center of attention, by in fact removing himself as must as possible from the exchange, he freed Jesus to work in a powerful way. 

When the messengers returned to the house,

they found the slave in good health.

Jesus did not need to enter the house of the centurion to heal his servant. And even though Jesus was on his way to the house, and some good would have no doubt come from his visit in addition to the healing, the way he healed him from where he was may well have been a greater benefit because of the way it confirmed the faith already growing in the centurion. 

We tend to make ourselves the center of our interactions with Jesus, and assume that whether or not he hears our prayers has to do with how he finds the house of our hearts when he arrives. But it has much less to do with us and much more to what we believe him able to do, not because of us, because of who we are or what we have done, but because of who he himself is. 

We are sometimes reluctant to embrace the humility of the centurion because we have a confused notion of humility, that is more like self-hatred, a program of negative thinking about ourselves. However, as the centurion demonstrated, it is much more like self-forgetfulness. Humility has the power to remove our liabilities and limitations as obstacles to the work of Jesus, while faith reaches out and attains what we need.

I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof ...

but say the word and let my servant be healed.

We echo the words of the centurion in every mass because we are not, could not ever be worthy of all that Jesus has done for us. But we should not be discouraged by this, as though he will some day realize it and stop giving us his grace and blessings. Instead we should grow increasing confident of all that he is able to do in us and through us even in spite of us. We should grow confident, too, that he wants to do all of this, much more than we ourselves feebly desire it.

Paul desired that people everywhere lift up supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings, not because he was convinced that God would eventually concede to the vast merit of a deserving crowd, but because he believed that God himself valued and desired that those requests be made, and desired himself to answer them. Therefore true humility will not cause us to neglect intercession as though are prayers are too small too matter. Rather we should realize that this "is good and pleasing to God our savior, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth".

Hear the sound of my pleading, when I cry to you,

lifting up my hands toward your holy shrine.

Chris Tomlin - Unchanging

17 September 2023 - debt relief

Today's Readings

(Audio)

Moved with compassion the master of that servant

let him go and forgave him the loan.

The master's compassion was greater even than a huge, unpayable debt. But the servant seemed to miss this critical point. He seemed only to realize that he had been let off the hook, that he had narrowly dodged a bullet. An event that ought to have made him thankful and made him come to love and trust his master only seemed to make him fearful and desperate. Having had a close brush with judgment it seemed that the possibility of judgment now consumed his thoughts. He had failed to stand alone, had not truly been self-sufficient, and it no doubt seemed to him that the most important thing was for him was to ensure he could do so in the future.

When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants

who owed him a much smaller amount.

He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,

'Pay back what you owe.'

Because the servant did not learn the correct lesson from the master's compassion he himself remained at the center of his own narrow universe. And from that vantage point all he knew was how precarious his position was. He wanted to accumulate enough, extracting it from the debts of others, to ensure that he was never again exposed to the danger of his own debts. But this could not work because what his fellow servants owed was a trivial amount compared to the debt he had managed to accumulate. 

Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,

'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'

But he refused.

The servant, since he himself remained at the center of his own universe, could not recognize his own cry for mercy ("Be patient with me, and I will pay you back") on the lips of his fellow servant. He could not hear this cry for mercy because his own fear imprisoned him. It locked him inside of himself numbed him to the needs of others. It ought to have gone quite differently. He should have been able to recognize his own words on the lips of his fellow servant and responded with compassion as his master had first responded to him. But having taken for granted his master's mercy he himself had not been changed for the better by it in the way he should have been. Instead, he became much worse and more dangerous.

But he refused.

Instead, he had the fellow servant put in prison

until he paid back the debt.

In putting his fellow servant in prison it was as though he was trying to force him to experience what his own fear already caused him to feel. He felt the inescapable urgency of his own liability as a debtor as prison walls pressing in from every side. He would therefore insist others felt this as well. What he ought to have shared instead was the mercy of the master, but since that mercy didn't sufficiently even register with him all he had to share was his own insufficiency, his own prison.

His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant!

I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.

Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,

as I had pity on you?'

Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers

until he should pay back the whole debt.

The master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he should pay back to entire debt. What can this mean accept that the master threw the servant back entirely upon himself and his own resources, as the servant himself seemed to insist, and left him no escape from the prison which his own ego had constructed. The debt remained unpayable, but he insisted on having it extracted from him, as by torture, rather than truly allowing mercy to set him free. He clung to unforgiveness just as the book of Sirach warns against in today's first reading.

Wrath and anger are hateful things,

yet the sinner hugs them tight.

The vengeful will suffer the LORD's vengeance,

for he remembers their sins in detail.

Forgive your neighbor's injustice;

then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven.

The master was not about to allow this wicked servant to inflict his own issues on his fellow servants indefinitely. They cried out to him and he answered them. This cry of theirs for justice was something we too can imitate when we see oppression and unforgiveness in the world. But before we do so we should make sure, as much as possible, that we are selves are not a part of the problem. Have we truly recognized the magnitude of the mercy the Lord has poured out upon us? His that mercy led us to a posture of trust and thanksgiving, or has it only left us fearful and desperate? Are we still, consciously or unconsciously, try to extract the much smaller debts we perceive ourselves to be owed by others? Or are we rather agents of forgiveness and mercy ourselves, having been transformed by the mercy we ourselves have first received? Apart from mercy there is nothing for us but our own self-imposed prisons. But we are not meant to struggle alone, apart from mercy.

None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself.

For if we live, we live for the Lord,

and if we die, we die for the Lord;

so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.

For this is why Christ died and came to life,

that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

We Belong To God

Songs In His Presence - So Bless The Lord

16 September 2023 - one foundation

Today's Readings

(Audio)

A good tree does not bear rotten fruit,

nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit.

For every tree is known by its own fruit.

How do we account for the fact that our own fruit is imperfect? We are not so good a tree that all of our fruit is entirely an image of the ideal. And if we are not this good tree, this tree that bears only and entirely good fruit, is there hope for us?

We can see that Jesus himself seemed to authorize patience in regard to trees that were struggling to bear fruit, that such trees were actually worthy of special care and attention on the part of the gardener.

And he answered him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’ (see Luke 13:8-9).

A tree that is sufficiently rotten will need an external intervention if it is to be brought back to health. But let us mix our metaphors slightly. If the source of the life of the tree is inadequate then no mere triage of the symptomatic parts will be sufficient. It would then lack the flowing inner life necessary to yield desirable fruit. In such cases a new source of life must be necessary, as when lifeless branches are grafted onto a vine.

and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree (see Romans 11:17).

So if we seem insufficient of ourselves to bear desirable fruit, perhaps there is another tree unto which we might be grafted. And what is the one tree which bears only good fruit? It is the cross of Jesus himself. He is the one who has invited us to abide in him as branches on a vine.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (see John 15:5).

If we persist on our own apart from the life flowing from Christ our fruit will go from bad to worse as what little even what little sap we have in our branches dries up and dies and we wither in the hostile weather and the storms of life. But if we are attentive and cherish and nurture our connection to Jesus then the fruits of his Holy Spirit will become increasingly manifest in us. 

I will show you what someone is like who comes to me,

listens to my words, and acts on them.

Jesus wants to be the foundation of our lives. His words are more than good ideas or true philosophy. They are a solid foundation because his words empower what they command. He is not like someone who commands us to build a house but then provides no help. He himself is actually meant to be the chief laborer in the project of our lives.

Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain (see Psalm 127:1).

The risk for us is that we prefer to remain rooted in our old self, no matter how many thorns and brambles it contains. We sometimes build on sand just to avoid dependence on anyone, even Jesus himself. But it is not only true that apart from Jesus we may not succeed. It is rather the case that we cannot. For he is the only truly solid and stable foundation for our lives. His life, flowing from the tree of the cross to us, is the only thing that can transform that which is rotten within us and make us to bear the good fruit he desires.

The Hillbilly Thomists - Good Tree