Monday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 383
Reading 1
Hosea 2:16, 17c-18, 21-22
Thus says the LORD:
I will allure her;
I will lead her into the desert
and speak to her heart.
She shall respond there as in the days of her youth,
when she came up from the land of Egypt.
On that day, says the LORD,
She shall call me “My husband,”
and never again “My baal.”
I will espouse you to me forever:
I will espouse you in right and in justice,
in love and in mercy;
I will espouse you in fidelity,
and you shall know the LORD.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (8a) The Lord is gracious and merciful.
Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
Generation after generation praises your works
and proclaims your might.
They speak of the splendor of your glorious majesty
and tell of your wondrous works.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
They discourse of the power of your terrible deeds
and declare your greatness.
They publish the fame of your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your justice.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
Alleluia
See 2 Timothy 1:10
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death
and brought life to light through the
Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Matthew 9:18-26
While Jesus was speaking, an official came forward,
knelt down before him, and said,
“My daughter has just died.
But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.”
Jesus rose and followed him, and so did his disciples.
A woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him
and touched the tassel on his cloak.
She said to herself, “If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured.”
Jesus turned around and saw her, and said,
“Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved you.”
And from that hour the woman was cured.
When Jesus arrived at the official’s house
and saw the flute players and the crowd who were making a commotion,
he said, “Go away! The girl is not dead but sleeping.”
And they ridiculed him.
When the crowd was put out, he came and took her by the hand,
and the little girl arose.
And news of this spread throughout all that land.
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
Responding to the Voice of God
A woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the tassel on his cloak. She said to herself, “If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured.” Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, “Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved you.” And from that hour the woman was cured. Matthew 9:20–21
What a tremendous amount of faith this woman had! She had suffered for many years and continued to suffer with her hemorrhages. How did she know that touching Jesus’ cloak would cure her? The only answer to that is faith. Faith is not just wishful thinking or hoping. Faith is a certain knowledge, given by a special grace and revelation from God, by which a person freely assents to belief. God spoke to her heart, she listened, she responded, and she was cured.
One thing that is very inspiring in this Gospel story is the humility with which this woman approached Jesus. She didn’t feel as though she needed to bother Jesus, to speak to Him, or to trouble Him with her problem. Instead, in her humility, she presented her need to Jesus through her gift of faith, interiorly and silently, and the grace of God was given her because God sees the heart and responds to such humble and sincere faith.
Imagine if everyone had this depth of faith in our Lord. Imagine if all of us knew, with the deepest conviction of certitude, that God would take care of every need we have. And imagine if we turned to our Lord with this deep conviction of certitude every day with every need. If we could do that, then our Lord would be able to continually care for us in every way.
One key component to this woman’s healing is that it was God the Father who spoke to her and invited her to touch the cloak of His Son Jesus. And it was Jesus who sensed the healing she received, since He was in perfect union with the will of His Father. Therefore, touching Jesus’ cloak was not simply a magical act by which whatever this woman wanted would be granted to her. Instead, it was a response to the interior invitation she was given by the Father.
In our lives, we must work to do the same. Too often we present our preferences to God and tell Him what we want Him to do. God does not respond to such requests. Instead, we must seek His will…and His will alone. This woman knew she would be healed, because God the Father spoke to her in her mind and heart and inspired her to touch the cloak of Jesus His Son, and she responded, and the healing took place. God must speak first, we must hear and respond, and then His will is accomplished.
Reflect, today, upon the gentle Voice of God as He speaks to you in the depths of your heart. Do you hear Him? What is He inviting you to do? What healing does He want to bestow? As you ponder God’s Voice, try to respond only to Him. Set aside all of your own preferences and ideas of what God should do and seek only what He is speaking to you. Say “Yes” to Him, do so with certitude and conviction, and trust that whatever He speaks to you, if you have faith in what He says, He will do it.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
TO GET SPIRITUAL OUTPUT, PUT OUT
“When the crowd had been put out He entered...”—Matthew 9:25
As the prophet Hosea says, God plans to woo us into the desert (Hos 2:16). The din of the world must be ejected from our lives so we can hear God in the silence and respond to His love (Hos 2:17). Today’s Gospel shows that once the din of the crowd had been “put out,” healing and resurrection could take place in an atmosphere of faith (Mt 9:23ff).
What do you need to remove from your life today? Is it your TV or handheld electronic device? Is it a cynical mindset, a judgmental attitude, or even friendships which lead you away from the Lord? (see 1 Cor 15:33) Until we discard all the clutter, we will not be traveling light enough to walk with Jesus.
“Have no love for the world, nor the things that the world affords. If anyone loves the world, the Father’s love has no place in him, for nothing that the world affords comes from the Father. Carnal allurements, enticements for the eye, the life of empty show — all these are from the world. And the world with its seductions is passing away” (1 Jn 2:15-17). Get rid of all that leads you away from the Lord (Mt 9:25). Then “put out” into the deep, trusting fully in Jesus (Lk 5:4).
Prayer: Jesus, I surrender all to You. I ask You to take from me what I cannot yet give fully to You. Grant me an insatiable desire to place my life into Your hands.
Promise: “The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness.” —Ps 145:8
Praise: Dan was drawn to follow Jesus more closely when he observed the love and joy of God in a fellow teen. Shortly after, Dan began volunteering with a ministry to young adults.
Reflection 3
The Servants of the Word
Take Heart, Your Faith Has Made You Well
Do you take your troubles to the Lord with expectant faith and confidence in his help? People in desperate or helpless circumstances were not disappointed when they sought Jesus out. What drew them to Jesus? Was it hope for a miracle or a word of comfort in their affliction? What did the elderly woman who had suffered greatly for twelve years expect Jesus to do for her? And what did a grieving father expect Jesus to do about his lost beloved daughter?
Words of hope directed to God
Jesus gave hope where there seemed to be no human cause for it because his hope was directed to God. He spoke words of hope to the woman (Take heart, daughter!) to ignite the spark of faith in her (your faith has made you well!). And he also gave divine hope to a father who had just lost a beloved child.
It took considerable courage and risk for the ruler of a synagogue to openly go to Jesus and to invite the scorn of his neighbors and kin. Even the hired mourners laughed at him in scorn. Their grief was devoid of any hope. Nonetheless, Jesus took the girl by the hand and delivered her from the grasp of death. In both instances we see Jesus' personal concern for the needs of others and his readiness to heal and restore life.
The infinite love of God
In Jesus we see the infinite love of God extending to each and every individual as he gives freely and wholly of himself to each person he meets. Do you approach the Lord with confident expectation that he will hear your request and act?
Prayers
My gentle Lord, You speak to me day and night, calling me to the healing I need. Help me to hear Your Voice and to respond to You in faith. May my faith and confidence in You grow strong and become the source of Your glorious action in my life. Jesus, I do trust in You.
Lord Jesus, you love each of us individually with a unique and personal love. Touch my life with your saving power, heal and restore me to fullness of life. Help me to give wholly of myself in loving service to others.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 189: Overcoming Fear
Fear results from various causes. The perception of some immediate threat causes sudden fear as a sort of defense mechanism. In fact, this could save your life if, for example, the immediate threat is a car swerving into your lane. Sudden fear compels you to take action and avoid a collision. However, fear can also result from other more remote factors that we experience as threats to our well-being. For example, one may struggle with fear over an economic downturn or loss of profit in a business. The fear may be, “How will I support my family?” Or one may have health issues and this causes increasing fear about the future. And the list could go on. Though some forms of fear are healthy (swerving to avoid a car accident), most others are not. Specifically, when fear causes anxiety and worry, leading one to lose trust in God and His providence, this is a problem. But if God is alive in your heart, living and reigning there, His presence produces a supernatural confidence and trust in the midst of any and every struggle we face (See Diary #1001).
Reflect upon the specific fear you struggle with right now. What is it that causes excessive worry and anxiety? Whatever it may be, the Lord wants you to trust Him. Yes, a certain “holy” fear can help us evaluate all situations properly and act diligently and responsibly, but too often what we actually struggle with is a lack of trust in God. Reflect upon your fear and your trust and invite Christ more deeply into your heart so that His presence will cast out all useless fear, enabling you to fully trust in His care, providence and Mercy.
Lord, I do trust in You. Help me to trust You all the more. I surrender to You all that tempts me to fear. I trust in Your perfect love and desire to rely completely on Your Mercy in my life. My life is Yours, dear Lord, do with me as You will and guide me always. Jesus, I trust in You.
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