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

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“If you want to be perfect,

go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor,

and you will have riches in heaven;

then come and follow me.”

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– Matthew 19:21 (GNT)

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Jesus said,

“If any of you want to come with me,

you must forget yourself,

carry your cross,

and follow me.”

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– Matthew 16:24 (GNT)

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REFLECTION…

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The cross is the inimitable sacrifice of Christ,

the one mediator between God and men.

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Christ always leads by example.

His life, His teachings, and His suffering for us,

are clear examples

as well as loving and persistent calls for us to follow Him

– at whatever worldly cost

and no matter what we have to sacrifice in the process.

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We are called to have faith and accept God’s will for us,

and to take up our cross and to follow Christ.

We can only do so by putting our pride and our self-centeredness aside.

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Yes, if I want to follow Jesus and go with Him,

I must forget myself.

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QUOTE…

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“Apart from the cross there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven.”

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– St. Rose of Lima

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Jesus, my Lord and Guide, I want to follow You.

Help me forget myself and to submit myself to Your will.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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The Lord comforts His people
and will have compassion on His afflicted ones.

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– Isaiah 49:13 (NIV)

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REFLECTION…

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Such a great reason for us to take heart,

rejoice, persevere, and be filled with hope

– the Lord comforts us, His followers,

and showers His compassion upon us

in our suffering,

our troubles,

and in our affliction of sin.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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In you, O just and loving Lord, I put my trust.

Your loving grace surrounds me…and I will overcome!

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“I entered this world to render judgment –

to give sight to the blind;

and to show those who think they see,

that they are blind.”

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– John 9:39 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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Jesus did not come to condemn the world

but to save it.

His presence among us, however,

already involves a judgment,

because each of us has to take a stand

on whether to reject or accept Jesus.

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Christ’s coming

implies the fall of some

and the salvation of others.

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In this sense, we will fall into one of two categories

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…on the one hand, the humble of heart,

who recognise their failings

and who go to Jesus

in search of forgiveness

– these will receive the light He is speaking of;

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…on the other hand, those who are satisfied with themselves

and think that they do not need Christ

or His word

– these say they see

but in fact they are blind.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord, thank You for making me see Your truth.

Please grant me the grace to live it.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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“You say, ‘I am rich and well off; I have all I need.’

But you do not know how miserable and pitiful you are!

You are poor, naked, and blind.”

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– Revelation 3:17 (GNT)

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REFLECTION…

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This dire warning comes from God’s love, not His anger.

It is His affection that leads Him to reprove and correct His people

– in this instance, those who because of their worldly prosperity and contentment

are tainted with pride and conceit

and have also become spiritually lukewarm.

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Sure, let us use the things of this world,

but we must put our trust in the things of eternity.

We can never be truly satisfied by material possessions,

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Even if we owned every good thing in the world

we would not be happy and blessed,

for our blessedness and joy is in God, who created all things.

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Our happiness is not in what is seen and admired by others,

but in what the good and faithful followers of Christ seek.

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Our happiness is in what the spiritual and pure of heart sometimes experience in this life,

even though it is meant for the next.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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In You alone I place my trust, O Lord.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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God has made us what we are,

and in our union with Christ Jesus He has created us for a life of good deeds,

which He has already prepared for us to do.

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– Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)

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Anyone who is joined to Christ is a new being;

the old is gone, the new has come.

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– 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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God has made us what we are

and we became His new creation,

when we were joined to Christ at Baptism.

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At Baptism, we are renewed and sanctified

and, as Christians, we should live in a manner consistent with our faith.

It is this new life of grace, which in fact moves us to truly love and practise charity

and to do those good works which God wishes to see performed

and which perfect the work of salvation.

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A Christian’s deeds and good works, prove his or her genuineness of faith,

for "faith by itself isn’t enough.

Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless." (Jas 2:17)

Without good deeds and works

our love for God and for neighbour would be false.

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Having said that, it is also true that to bring about this renewal in us

God counts on our readiness to respond to grace

and on our actually carrying out "good works".

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How eager have I been to respond to God’s grace

and to do His will?

How ready am I to spread God’s love

and to do for others as He did for me?

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Come Holy Spirit, enlighten my mind and direct my will,

that I may do for others what is pleasing to You.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Oh, give me back my joy again;
You have broken me –
now let me rejoice.
Don’t keep looking at my sins.
Remove the stain of my guilt.
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Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.
Do not banish me from Your presence,
and don’t take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
and make me willing to obey You.

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– Psalm 51:7-12 (NLT)

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QUOTE…

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“We are born, each of us, with a desire for good

and a lust for evil.

We are called to life

and attracted to death.

We hear: “Do good,”

and we respond: “Choose pleasure.”

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Sometimes when God reaches out to us we disdain Him.

Even so, God does not forsake us.

His gracious pity shows itself in our lives

in an abundance of mercy and compassion,

looking upon the sorrows of all who attempt to follow Him.

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He is with us to console and save our souls,

to prepare us for eternal life, not eternal death.

His grace precedes and follows us,

so that we can, with passion, receive and fulfill His words of life.”

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– St Hildegard of Bingen

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.

Create in me a clean heart, that I may truly love You.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Have mercy on me, O God,
because of Your unfailing love.
Because of Your great compassion,
blot out the stain of my sins.
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Wash me clean from my guilt.
Purify me from my sin.

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– Psalm 51:1-2 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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To receive God’s mercy, we must admit our faults.

"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,

and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins,

He is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins

and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 Jn 8:9)

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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O God, you know how foolish I am; my sins cannot be hidden from you.

Wash me clean from my guilt, O God,

and create in me a clean heart.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Have mercy on me, O God,
because of Your unfailing love.
Because of Your great compassion,
blot out the stain of my sins.
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Wash me clean from my guilt.
Purify me from my sin.

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– Psalm 51:1-2 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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To receive God’s mercy, we must admit our faults.

"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,

and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins,

He is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins

and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 Jn 8:9)

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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O God, you know how foolish I am; my sins cannot be hidden from you.

Wash me clean from my guilt, O God,

and create in me a clean heart.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me,

and anyone who isn’t working with me

is actually working against me.”

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– Luke 11:23 (NLT)

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REFLECTION…

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We must be open to God’s grace

and we must reform our ways.
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Christ’s life on earth compels people to take a stand

– either for God

or against Him.

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Jesus Christ has conquered and He is Lord of all,

and His words are addressed to mankind at large.

even to those who do not want to recognise Him as Lord.

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That is why we need to truly listen to and absorb these words, which are His:

“Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me,

and anyone who isn’t working with me

is actually working against me.”

If our attitude – public or private – towards Him is one of neutrality or indifference,

then we are actually working against Him.

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Jesus is seriously urging those of us who claim to believe in Him,

to follow and obey Him faithfully

and not only if or where or when it suits us.

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He wants us to be faithful to Him

because He loves and cares about us,

and because He wants us to enjoy His promise of eternal life.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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I am with You, Lord Jesus,

and I want to follow and obey You faithfully – always and in everything.

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TODAY’S WORD…

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Jesus said,

“I have come not to abolish [the Law and the Prophets]

but to complete them.

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I tell you solemnly,

till heaven and earth disappear,

not one dot,

not one little stroke,

shall disappear from the Law

until its purpose is achieved.”

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– Matthew 5:17-18 (JB)

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REFLECTION…

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This is a strong affirmation by Jesus,

that “the Law” will never be destroyed

until it is fulfilled.

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Jesus is also stressing the perpetual value of the Old Testament

– it is the Word of God,

and because it has a divine authority,

it therefore deserves total respect.

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Our Lord emphasises

that the spirit and substance of “the Law”,

which requires love and obedience to God and love towards people,

cannot be changed,

and will last forever.

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In fact, Jesus gives greater weight and meaning,

to the moral precepts of “the Law” of the Old Testament,

and He brings then into the New Testament.

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The entire Law of the Gospel

is contained in the “new commandment” of Jesus

– to love one another as He has loved us.

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And so, it is ultimately Jesus, who completes the Law in us.

It is He who gives us the grace

to love the Lord our God

with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength,

and…to love our neighbour as ourselves.

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REPETITIVE PRAYER FOR TODAY…

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Lord, Your Law is eternal.

I gladly embrace it and it is within my heart,

as is the desire to do Your will.

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