Luke 19:41-44
As Jesus drew near Jerusalem, he saw the
city and wept over it, saying, "If this day you
only knew what makes for peace-- but now it
is hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming
upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade
against you; they will encircle you and hem you
in on all sides. They will smash you to the
ground and your children within you, and they will
not leave one stone upon another within you because
you did not recognize the time of your visitation."
Introductory
Prayer: Lord Jesus, many times I have overlooked your
love in the circumstances of my life. I know you
are always present, even if I don’t feel your
love. This time of prayer is an opportunity to
show you my love, and I truly desire to bring
you consolation as you so often bring consolation to
me.
Petition: Heavenly Father, help me to stand firm
amidst the vicissitudes of life.
1. “As for Me and My
Household, We Will Serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).
The beauty of this life is that it offers
us so many options. We have all been given
the grace of free will, and we can choose
to do many things. We can choose where we would
like to work, where we want to vacation, who
our friends are, what we are going to do this
very moment. But the most important choice we make
in life is to decide whether to love and
serve God or to deny him. God’s greatest, natural gift
to us is free will, and with it we
direct our own destiny. What a truly beautiful soul who
chooses to spend his life serving God! Clearly opting
for God and his ways gives direction to a
person’s life and provides clarity in moments of darkness
and trial.
2. The Time to Prepare for a Storm Is
Now: The worst time to clean out the gutters is
in the middle of a thunder storm. And that
roof would have worked a lot better had it been
fixed before a week of rain. The concept of
being prepared is so hard for us human beings.
Christ told his disciples, “Watch and pray, that you may
not undergo the test” (Matthew 26:41). He was saying,
“Be prepared. You never know when temptations or tough
times are going to strike.”
3. Holding the Fort: The
spiritual life is a lot like a castle. A castle
has its strong points and its not-so-strong points. It
has a moat, high stone walls and turrets, but
it also has a gate made only of wood. Each
of us has one or two things that can
be likened to that wooden gate. We all have our
weaknesses, but do we know what those weaknesses are?
One of the keys to being able to resist
sin is self-knowledge. If we know ourselves, we can avoid
putting ourselves in compromising situations. We can use our
strong points to fight the enemy and fortify those
areas that are the weakest. In the end, the strongest
weapon we have both to resist and to fight
is our dependence on the Lord – our prayer and
fidelity to his will!
Conversation with Christ: Jesus,
I don’t want to base my life just on
feelings and on what makes me happy. I want to
live for you, to take a risk for you.
Resolution:I will start a constant prayer
life by praying the Rosary every day this week.
Spiritual Life
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