A LAMP TO MY FEET. A LIGHT FOR MY PATH.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ,

that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor,

so that by His poverty you might become rich.

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– 2 Corinthians 8:9 (NRSV)

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REFLECTION…

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Jesus Christ, in his Incarnation and throughout His life,

gave us a wonderful example of generosity and detachment.

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Our Lord, because He is God, was in need of nothing;

but by becoming man He voluntarily despoiled Himself of the splendour of His divinity

and lived on earth as a poor man

– from His birth in poverty in Bethlehem

to His death on the cross;

sometimes He did not even have the bare necessities of life.

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The knowledge of God and godliness,

liberation from sin,

justification,

sanctification,

the countless good things which He has bestowed on us

and will bestow on us in the future

– all those things have accrued to us

through Jesus’ poverty,

through His becoming human and suffering what He suffered.

And yet, unlike us, He did not deserve punishment and suffering. (Cf. St. John Chrysostom. Hom. on 2 Cor.", 17)

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Jesus’ example

is a divine call to all Christians to be outstanding in love and charity;

to gladly give of self to those in need.

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Jesus did it all for us

out of His great love for us.

Let us follow His example as we obey His commandment

and love one another

just as He loved us.

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QUOTE…

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“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.

Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.”

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– Our Lord Jesus Christ (Jn 13:34)

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Jesus, my Saviour, I am so undeserving of Your generous love.

Teach me, Lord, to give of myself like You did.

In Your Name I pray. Amen.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“Do not resist an evil person.

If anyone slaps you on the right cheek,

turn to them the other cheek also.”

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– Matthew 5:39 (NIV)

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REFLECTION…

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If I find myself objecting to what Jesus is telling me here;

if I feel I can put forward so many arguments and scenarios

where offering the other cheek is simply not on,

then I should stop,

turn my focus away from myself

and place it back on the Lord

…and I will hear Him patiently prompting me:

"Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart." (Mat 11:29)

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Being gentle and humble

is imitating Christ

…and I really must never stop learning from Him,

and always seek to become more like Him.

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When Jesus says to me,

“If anyone slaps you on the right cheek,

turn to them the other cheek also” ,

He is teaching absence of pride

and the need to adopt a gentle and forgiving attitude

– essential qualities if I am to live my life as a true Christian,

as a true follower of Christ.

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QUOTE…

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“…we should not take it that Christ literally meant

that you should offer the other cheek to some to hit you;

what He was referring to was your interior disposition;

that is, if necessary we should be ready not to be intolerant

of anyone who hurts us,

and we should be ready to put up with this kind of treatment,

or worse than that.

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That was how the Lord acted

when He surrendered His body to death"

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– St. Thomas

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Holy Spirit, I need You.

Come, fill me, change me, and make me gentle and humble like Jesus.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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“All the trees in the land will know

that I am the Lord.

I cut down the tall trees

and make small trees grow tall.

I wither up the green trees

and make the dry trees become green.

I, the Lord, have spoken.

I will do what I have said I would do.”

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– Ezekiel 17:24 (GNT)

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REFLECTION…

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The Lord our God reminds us

that He is the Author of life

and He warns those who, in their arrogance, do not accept Him,

as He encourages and reassures those who are humble.

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Jesus Himself told us that

“all who exalt themselves will be humbled,

and all who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Mat 23:12)

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Do I see myself as a low tree to be made high

or a high tree to be made low?

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To me, God’s words can either sound like a welcome promise,

or they can make me realise

that I may be too much like that lush but proud green tree

which can so easily wither up.

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…

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Lord, change me, transform me

…and make me like one of those trees that embellish Your garden

and never stop thanking You and giving You praise.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Come, Holy Spirit – change me and transform me.

Lord, please save me from myself!

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Christ died for everyone

so that those who receive His new life will no longer live for themselves.

Instead, they will live for Christ,

who died and was raised for them.

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– 2 Corinthians 5:15 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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To live “for myself” means

to live for my own comfort,

my own glory,

my own advancement.

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To live “for Christ” means

to always put in the first place, in our intentions, the glory of Christ,

and of His Kingdom.

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Every “no,” small or big, which I say to myself out of love for Christ,

is a yes said to Him who I call “Lord”.

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Every decision I take to say “no” to myself out of love for Christ,

is like proclaiming that Jesus Christ is my Lord;

recognising His full right over me;

handing the reins of my life over to Him;

declaring that I do not want to live any more "for myself,"

but "for Him who died and rose for me".
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QUOTE…

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"Jesus Christ died for us;

by His death He has given us life;

we only live because He died;

He died for us, by us, and in us;

our life then is no longer ours,

but belongs to Him who has purchased it for us by His death:

we are therefore no more to live to ourselves but to Him;

not in ourselves but in Him;

nor for ourselves but for Him"

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– St Francis de Sales

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Yes Lord, I want to live for You only!

Help me to always do Your will

and to say “no” to my self-centeredness.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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The Lord is kind and full of compassion,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

How good is the Lord to all,

compassionate to all His creatures.

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The Lord is faithful in all His words

and loving in all His deeds.

The Lord supports all who fall

and raises all who are bowed down.

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The Lord is just in all His ways

and loving in all His deeds.

He is close to all who call Him,

who call on Him from their hearts.

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– Psalm 145:8-9,13-14,17-18 (JB)

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QUOTE…

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“Tell God what you need,

and thank Him for all He has done.

Then you will experience God’s peace,

which exceeds anything we can understand.

His peace will guard your hearts and minds

as you live in Christ Jesus.”

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– St. Paul (Phil 4:6-7)

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Father, forgive me.

You who are so kind and full of compassion,

have mercy on me and fill me with Your peace.

Thank You, Almighty God, for Your great love for me.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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“Be still, and know that I am God!”

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– Psalm 46:10a (NRSV)

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A RESPONSE…

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Lord, I hear You calling me to be still

…and inviting me into Your presence.

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O Lord, my God,

help me remove my mind from all that occupies it,

and lead me…now…to that place, that quiet spot

where I can be still

and alone

with You.

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…

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Here I am, Lord.

Here we are, Lord, just You and I.

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…

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I open up my heart to You

and I empty it before You.

Lord, fill it with Your love.

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Quieten my mind, Lord.

Rush in, take over,

and fill it with Your truth.

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Come, my Lord and my God,

my soul thirsts for You.

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Come…

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Quieten my soul, so I may know You
Quieten my mind, so I may hear Your voice
Quieten my heart so I may feel Your love
Quieten me…and fill me with Your peace!

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“You are the light of the world.

A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.

Instead they put it on its stand,

and it gives light to everyone in the house.

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In the same way, let your light shine before others,

that they may see your good deeds

and glorify your Father in heaven.”

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– Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV)

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REFLECTION…

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I think of those persons in my life

whose words and actions were like beacons of faith and hope for me.

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It wasn’t a matter of preaching,

but it was their kind words and caring actions

and their personal example

that really surprised and also enlightened me;

that encouraged me in my faith;

that drew me closer to God

who is The Source of Light.

One is talking about fairly ordinary persons

in fairly ordinary circumstances.

Nevertheless, the light of faith that shines in such persons’ eyes

is always so very noticeable

whenever they express themselves in word or deed,

reflecting their beliefs and the love of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Theirs was the kind of light that points one in the right direction.

Let us pray to God, to fill us with His Light

that we may be beacons of peace, faith, love and hope for others

and help lead them safely out of the dark places

that they may be finding themselves in.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord Jesus, fill me with Your Light and use me.

Lord, make me more like You!

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“You are the salt of the earth.

But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?

It is no longer good for anything,

except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”

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– Matthew 5:13 (NIV)

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REFLECTION…

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Jesus reminds us that as His followers,

we not only have to strive for personal sanctification

but we also have a duty to seek the sanctification of others.

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“You are the salt of the earth.”

Why Salt?

Because just as salt is used to preserve food from corruption

and to bring out the flavour of food and make it more pleasant,

finally disappearing into the food,

so must we Christians be.

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However, we must also be fully aware that

when salt loses its taste,

“it is no longer good for anything,

except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”

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For Jesus, we are like that humble yet so essential salt.

Having been blessed with the Truth

we have a duty to be at one with our faith

as we live it, safeguard it and preserve it.

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If we are truly living our faith,

then we must be bringing out and gladly sharing

the love, joy and peace

that the Holy Spirit makes so abundantly available to us who believe,

drawing others to Christ as we do so.

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But the focus must always be on Jesus

and never on ourselves.

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Jesus must increase, but I must decrease.

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QUOTE…

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“My joy has been fulfilled.

He must increase, but I must decrease.”

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– St. John the Baptist [Jn 3:29-30]

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Jesus, my Lord, fill me, use me…

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TODAY’S WORD…

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All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

God is our merciful Father

and the source of all comfort.

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He comforts us in all our troubles

so that we can comfort others.

When they are troubled,

we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.

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– 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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Jesus Christ reveals His merciful Father to us,

and God in His infinite love and mercy,

consoles us in our sufferings.

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This generous love, which fills our entire being,

prompts us to gladly share the comfort we receive with others,

as we praise and thank God

and gladly acknowledge Him as the Source of all love.

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QUOTE…

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"The truth, revealed in Christ, about God the ‘Merciful Father’

enables us to see Him as particularly close to man, especially when man is suffering,

when he is under threat at the very heart of his existence and dignity."

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– St. John Paul II

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Father in Heaven,

Source of all love and consolation,

thank You for great mercy.

Help me take You to others who need You.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“Whoever does the will of God

is my brother and sister and mother.”

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– Mark 3:35 (NRSV)

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QUOTE…

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“Everyone who does the will of the Father,

that is to say, who obeys Him,

is a brother or sister of Christ,

because he is like Him who fulfilled the will of His Father.”

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– St. Thomas

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Jesus, I want to be part of Your family.

Lord, help me do Your will!

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