Presence

Lord, You are always there
waiting for me.
May I never be too busy to
find time to spend in Your presence.

Freedom

“A thick and shapeless tree-trunk
would never believe that it could become a statue,
admired as a miracle of sculpture,
and would never submit itself to the chisel of the sculptor,
who sees by his genius what he can make of it.” (Saint Ignatius)
I ask for the grace to let myself be shaped by my loving Creator.

Consciousness

There is a time and place for everything, as the saying goes.
Lord, grant that I may always desire
to spend time in Your presence,
to hear Your call.

The Word of God

An expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”

But wanting to vindicate himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and took off, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came upon him, and when he saw him he was moved with compassion. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, treating them with oil and wine. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him, and when I come back I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Inspiration

The whole purpose of our life on this earth is to love and to develop, with God’s grace, our own individual capacity to love. It is on this that we will be judged. St John of the Cross wrote, ‘In the evening of life we will be tested by love.’ If, at the time of our death, we are fully loving according to our ability, then we are ready to merge with God, who is love Itself, and so to enter heaven.

Without other people, we would never know if we are truly loving. Jesus said, ‘The poor you have always with you.’ Every day, we need to exercise charity, tolerance, forgiveness and humility, for we are all sinners in need of God’s mercy.

Conversation

Remembering that I am still in God’s presence,
I imagine Jesus Himself standing or sitting beside me,
and say whatever is on my mind, whatever is in my heart,
speaking as one friend to another.

Conclusion

I thank God for these few moments we have spent alone together and for any insights I may have been given concerning the text.

Amen