My Friday Daily Blessings, September 13, 2013

My Friday Daily Blessings

Be still, quiet your heart and mind, the Lord is here, loving you, talking to you.....................

Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Catholic Observance)

Friday of the Twenty-third week in ordinary time (Roman Rite Calendar)

First Reading: 1 Tim 1:1-2, 12-14

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, to Timothy, my true child in faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he considered me trustworthy in appointing me to the ministry.
I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and an arrogant man, but I have been mercifully treated because I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief. Indeed, the grace of our Lord has been abundant, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 16: 1b-2a, and 5, 7-8, 11

"You are my inheritance, O Lord."

Gospel: Lk 6:39-42

Jesus told his disciples a parable: “Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit? No disciple is superior to the teacher; but when fully trained, every disciple will be like his teacher. Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’ when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you will see clearly to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.”

**Meditation:

Are you clear-sighted, especially in your perception of sin and the need for God’s grace? Jesus' two parables about poor vision allude to the proverb: Without vision the people perish! (Proverbs 29:18) What does the illustration of a blind guide and a bad eye (the log in the eye) say to us? A bad eye left untreated and a blind guide can cause a lot of trouble that will only end in sure disaster! We can only teach others what we have been taught ourselves. And how can we help others overcome their faults if we are blinded by our own faults? We are all in need of a physician who can give us vision, insight, and clarity for overcoming the blindspots of sin and ignorance in our own lives.

True disciples of Christ are those who listen to the voice of their Master and who submit to the skillful help of Jesus, the Divine Physician, who heals us and removes the cancer of sin from our lives. If we are to be guides and teachers for others, then we need good vision, both spiritual and moral vision, and a clear map that shows us the right path and destination for our life's journey. Jesus tells us that he is the way, the truth, and the life – no one comes to the Father except through him (John 14:6). If our destination is heaven – our true home and union with God – then there is only one way to get there and that way is through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. In the cross of Christ sin is pardoned and the sinner is made whole, darkness and corruption give way to light and truth, death is defeated and new life in Christ is restored. The cross of Christ frees us from condemnation and guilt and shows us the way of perfect love and unity with God and with our neighbor.

If Christ has truly freed us from guilt and condemnation, then why is judgmentalism and a critical spirit so rampant today, even among Christians? "Thinking the best of other people" is necessary if we wish to grow in love. And kindliness in judgment is nothing less that a sacred duty. The Rabbis warned people: "He who judges his neighbor favorably will be judged favorably by God." How easy it is to misjudge and how difficult it is to be impartial in judgment. Our judgment of others is usually "off the mark" because we can't see inside the other person, or we don't have access to all the facts, or we are swayed by instinct and unreasoning reactions to people. It is easier to find fault in others than in oneself. Jesus states a heavenly principle we can stake our lives on: what you give to others (and how you treat others) will return to you (Mark 4:24). The Lord knows our faults and he sees all, even the imperfections and sins of the heart which we cannot recognize in ourselves. Like a gentle father and a skillful doctor he patiently draws us to his seat of mercy and removes the cancer of sin which inhabits our hearts. Do you trust in God's mercy and grace? Ask the Lord to flood your heart with his loving-kindness and mercy that you may only have room for charity, forbearance, and kindness towards your neighbor.

**Prayer:

"O Father, give us the humility which realizes its ignorance, admits its mistakes, recognizes its need, welcomes advice, accepts rebuke. Help us always to praise rather than to criticize, to sympathize rather than to discourage, to build rather than to destroy, and to think of people at their best rather than at their worst. This we ask for thy name's sake." (Prayer of William Barclay, 20th century) 

Amen.

Sources:

Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

**Don Schwager

Author and Writer

Editor of Living Bullwark

Member of the Servants of the Word