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TODAY’S WORD…

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And the Word became flesh and lived among us.

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– John 1:14 (NRSV)

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“You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!”

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– Matthew 16:16 (NRSV)

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REFLECTION…

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Jesus is God, made man for love of us, every single one of us.

He is the key, the centre and the purpose of the whole of man’s history.

On Him depends our whole existence, on earth and in heaven.

And He wants us to treat Him with friendship and complete confidence.

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God the father predestined humanity to be conformed to the image of His Son,

in order that He might be the first-born among many brethren.

Our life has to be a continual imitation of His life here on earth.

He is our model for all the virtues.

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Jesus has a deep love for all that is truly human – work, friendship, the family –

and above all for us men and women, with our defects and miseries.

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We must take Christ as our Model

in the way we practise the virtues,

the way we treat other people,

the way we carry out our work,

in everything.

To imitate Him is to be filled with a spirit and a way of reacting which ought to direct the life of every Christian,

whatever his or her qualities, state of life, or place in society.

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To imitate Our Lord, we must see ourselves in Him.

It is not enough to have a general idea of the spirit of Jesus;

we have to learn the details of His life and, through them, His attitudes.

We must especially contemplate His life,

to derive from it strength, light, serenity and peace.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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My Jesus, forgive me for whenever I let circumstances take away that serenity and peace that only You give.

Help me be more like You, Lord. Strengthen me and fill me with Your light.

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[*] Today’s reflection is sourced from the seven-volume work “In Conversation with God” by Padre Francisco Fernández Carvajal.