Wednesday 4th Week of Ordinary Time

Always and Everywhere give Thanks to God

When you get to Heaven 

You will realize all that God has done for you

And you will be so stunned and grateful that you will spend all eternity thanking God

For that is how long it will take

Tuesday 4th Week of Ordinary Time

Saints and Sinners

The only difference between a saint and a sinner is that the saint keeps on trying. 

The only difference between a saint and a sinner, is that every saint has a past while every sinner has a future. 

Every Saint was a sinner and every sinner can be a saint. 

When St. Paul would greet his fellow Christians he would often call them saints. 

There is a saint in each one of us if only we let it out. 

Monday 4th Week of Ordinary Time

The Commandments

No trespassing !

We have all seen the signs. 

Keep Out!

When we trespass we cross the line. 

When we should have stayed out 

Commandments are there to keep us from getting into trouble. 

From going where we shouldn’t go. 

4th Sunday of Ordinary Time

 Speaking Authoritatively 

Everyone has an opinion. 

This homily is an opinion. 

All one has to do is go on the Internet and look at the comment section on any article and one will find thousands of opinions but no one speaks authoritatively. 

So a person can take or leave whatever another person says. 

And thousands of opinions does not make it more authoritative. 

At the time of Jesus there were many opinions by the religious leaders. 

But no religious leader believed that he had the ability to speak authoritatively or beyond his opinion. 

Jesus was different however.  

He spoke with authority because he was AUTHORIZED by His Father. Mk. 1:27

As Jesus said,

“All things have been delivered to me by my Father”and no one knows the Son, except the Father; no knows the Father, except the Son. Mt. 11:27

Jesus is the only one who knows the Father and the only one to whom the Father has given everything. 

Thus Jesus can speak authoritatively. 

There are many people who claim to speak authoritatively, but in reality have authorization from no one except themselves. 

In truth it is just their opinion. 

Know the difference between opinion and authority. 

Opinions are great for politics, cooking and shopping. 

But no one should base their Eternal Life on an opinion!

When it comes to Eternal Life, I want to hear from an authority. 

And that is why I choose Jesus. 

For no one comes to the Father except through Him. Jn. 14:6

3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

 Repent....the Kingdom of God is at hand. Mk. 1:15

The Assyrian Empire was in what is now Iraq. 

Assyria was the empire that conquered the Northern 10 tribes of Israel

And exiled them, never to be heard from again. 

Thus the origin of the 10 lost tribes of Israel.

Nineveh was its capital and was filled with every kind of wickedness you can imagine. 

So God told Jonah to preach repentance to Nineveh. 

For If Nineveh did not repent,

God was going to destroy it for its sins. 

Jonah however did not want them to repent. 

He wanted God to destroy them for their wickedness. 

What do we want God to do to our enemies?

To people who sin and cause harm to others?

Maybe if God would just get rid of them

The world would be a better place!

Most people know from what “other” people need to repent. 

But Is it always the other person who needs to repent?

The other person who is the problem?

What about ourselves?

Our sins are like our noses. 

We can’t see our own but everyone else can. 

 

Jesus preached the need for repentance too. 

Not because God was going to wipe out sinners,

But because the Kingdom of God was at hand. 

And if we wish to enter its gates,

Then we must repent of our sins. 

Of our pride and selfishness;

Lust and anger;

Self righteousness and jealousy;

Gossip and gluttony

Because there there is no room for these things in the Kingdom of God 

While the message of Jesus and Jonah is repent. 

Jesus however tells us to repent,

Not for fear of Hell,

But for Love of Heaven. 

For only those who repent

Can enter its gates. 

Saturday 2nd Week of Ordinary Time

 Saturday

The Last Supper.

     At the Last Supper Jesus knew that His disciples would not be at the foot of the cross as He laid down His Body and poured out His Blood.  

     So He made it possible for them to be there just the same only Sacramentally as He took the bread and said, “This is my Body which will be given up for you,” and “This is my Blood which will be poured out for you.”  

     Through the Last Supper, the disciples were able to share in the cross of Jesus. For the Body that He gave them to eat and the Blood that He gave them to drink , and the Body that He gave up on the cross and the Blood that He poured out on the cross are ONE and the SAME! The Mass therefore IS the Last Supper and the Sacrifice of Christ made present to us as it was to His disciples in the Upper Room. 

Dinner with a woman Lk. 7:36-50

     While at supper, a woman came and washed the feet of Jesus with her tears and dried them with her hair. The Pharisees were shocked that Jesus allowed a woman and a sinner to draw near to Him. 

   When we come to the Lord’s Table at Mass, we may not be perfect but if we kneel at His feet and pour out our hearts to Him,

He will feed us with His forgiveness and Peace. 

Thursday

 Dinner with the Pharisees 

     Jesus was a man who had no enemies. His table was open to friend and foe alike.  

     Have you ever had dinner with someone who did not like you or with an enemy?  For Jesus it was all in a days work as He went to dinner at the house of one of the leading Pharisees.  As He sat down all of the Pharisees “watched Him closely.”  

     But this did not stop Jesus. He broke Bread even with those who hated Him and who disagreed with Him. 

     Because Jesus loved even His enemies and not only associated with His enemies but broke bread with them. 

 Wednesday 

Dinner with Levi

     Jesus was a man who called sinners, not just to repentance but to follow Him…..to dine with Him and to break bread with Him. 

    Levi, was a tax collector who stole from the poor and gave to the rich. He had a quota to fill and send to Rome and any money left over he kept for himself. 

     Needless to say Levi was not very popular and had no compassion or mercy for others. 

   Jesus however did.  So he had dinner with Levi which shocked the Pharisees who thought He may as well have been having dinner with a drug dealer or embezzler. 

   So the Pharisees asked Jesus “Why He ate with Levi?” Which was a good question. 

    Jesus responded by saying, “I came not to call the virtuous but sinners. 

     So anyone who is a sinner has an open invitation to follow Jesus and have dinner with Him!

Tuesday Second Week of Ordinary Time

CANA:

     The Wedding at Cana shows us that Jesus was a man who enjoyed a good time!

He had been invited along with His Mother to attend a wedding.  Quite possibly the wedding of a good friend or relative.

     There was dancing and dining, laughter and love..... Joy was in the air....you could hear it in the music and see it on everyone's face.

     At Cana, we do not hear any of Jesus’ teaching or parables. there was no healing that took place. 

He merely made more wine, thus allowing the celebration to continue. 

     It was as if Jesus was saying, “More dancing, more singing, let us celebrate for there is love here tonight in the bride and groom and love is worth celebrating…that is why I have come!

Monday

 The Eucharistic Meals of Jesus. 

Picture yourself watching T.V. or sitting in your room and Jesus comes by and says "let's go to dinner! "

     This may sound odd, but it really isn't. Jesus did this all of the time!

After a long day preaching and healing and praying, Jesus was tired and hungry as we all are after a long day...and like us He too wanted to relax around a nice dinner.

     Throughout His life, we find Jesus having dinner with His friends, His enemies, with crowds and in small intimate settings, with the rich and poor, with men and women, with saints and sinners.

     Sometimes He was invited and other times He did the inviting.

But there is no doubt that Jesus loved to eat and that His meals were times of tenderness, sacrifice, healing, joy, teaching, conversion, revelation and love.

     When Jesus broke bread with others, it was a time to experience Jesus in the most intimate and personal of ways.

It was during His meals that we really come to know Jesus. 

     Many of His parables took place in the setting of a meal from the Prodigal Son which ends in a banquet, to choosing the highest and lowest place to sit at a banquet to inviting not the rich and famous but the poor, the blind and the crippled. 

   Jesus welcomed everyone to dine with Him.  This week we will visit with Jesus as He dines with all different kinds of people. 

2nd Sunday of Ordinary Time

 The Lamb of God Jn. 1:35

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. 

There wasn’t supposed to be suffering, war, division and death in the world. 

It was supposed to be a Garden where we walked with God. 

Oh sure, Sometimes this world can feel like a Garden.

When The sun is shining and everything is going right in the world. 

But then it all falls apart. 

War, unemployment, a call from the doctor;

And suddenly we feel as if we have been thrown out of the Garden. 

And we can’t to get back in. 

The gates have been slammed shut to keep out our hatred, jealously, pride and greed. 

To keep out our fighting, our arguing and all that divides us. 

We have exiled ourselves. 

And all we can do is ask God to have Mercy on us in our exile. 

Mercy on our struggles;

On our suffering and dying;

When Israel found itself exiled in Egypt

The Lamb of God set them free. 

The Blood of the Lamb was put on the doorposts and the angel of Death passed over their homes. 

And they ate the flesh of the Lamb at the Passover Meal, to strengthen them for the journey to the Promised Land. 

We all need a Lamb of God at some point in our lives. 

To set us free and to give us strength to go on. 

No one goes through this life without facing something bigger and stronger than them. 

Be it suffering, or fear or death.

At those times we pray,

Lamb of God, Have Mercy on us. 

For it is the Blood of Jesus that will save us from unending death. 

And His Flesh that will strengthen us for the journey in this life. 

Jesus is the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the world. 

Who takes away Everything that keeps this world from being what it was supposed to be.  

And Whose Supper

Will give us the strength we need 

For our journey to the Promised Land.  

Friday 1st Week of Ordinary Time

The Rulers of our Hearts. 1Sam. 8:4-22

The Israelites no longer wanted God to rule their hearts. 

So they asked Samuel to appoint a king to rule over them. 

And all the kings took their money, their land and their sons for war. 

We too elect people to rule over us. 

And they ask for our money, our land and our sons for their wars. 

Only when we ask God to rule over us will we truly be free and have Peace in our land 

Thursday 1st. Week of Ordinary Time

 The Defeat of Israel 1Sam. 4:1-11

Israel thought that because they had the Ark of the Covenant,

That they could never lose. 

That they would win every battle. 

But they were wrong. 

The Philistines defeated them and took the Ark from them. 

Because while Israel had the Ark of the Covenant where God dwelt,

They did not have God in their heart

Where He truly wanted to dwell. 

Unless we make a place in our hearts for God to dwell and to reign,

Then our enemies will come and conquer us. 

Not just our physical enemies;

But the enemies of our hearts. 

 our fears, our anxieties;

Our obsessions and our addictions

Will conquer us and carry us away 

As the Phillistines did to Israel.

Wednesday 1st. Week of Ordinary Time

 Here I am Lord. 1Sam. 3-20

Many people want to know where God is?

I think GOD wants to know where we are!

He calls out to us,

But no one seems to answer. 

Here I am Lord!

I will do your Will. 

They are too busy doing their own Will;

Their own Thing!

A planet full of people. 

Almost 8 billion. 

And God is calling out to them

And how many people answer 

Here I am Lord;

I will do whatever you want?

Tuesday 1st Week of Ordinary Time

 Teaching with Authority. Mk. 1:21-28

Everyone has an opinion. 

And everyone thinks their opinion is right. 

So how does one know who to listen to ?

Who is telling the truth?

Jesus taught with Authority. 

And He backed up us Authoritative Teaching

With action. 

He cast out the unclean spirit. 

Before one listens to what someone says;

One should first look at what they do!

To see if their actions back up their words.