“Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus, ‘Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (MT 10: 5-7)
Whenever we are lost or when we do not know what to do or where to go, we can always ask Our Lord for help. His Church has all the answers we need.
“The Kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“A demoniac who could not speak was brought to Jesus, and when the demon was driven out the mute man spoke. The crowds were amazed and said, ‘Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.’” (MT 9: 22-23)
How often this “demon of mute” attacks our marriages and our relationships—we still speak, but we stop sharing feelings, mutually experiencing each other and getting to know one another in depth. Instead of this we plan activities, give advice or seek solutions to problems. We need to ask Our Lord to drive out this demon, so the mute man in us can speak and communicate about ourselves, to love each other deeper.
“I am the good shepherd, says the Lord; I know my sheep, and mine know me.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“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.” (HOS 2: 21-22)
This is the daily life of our marriages: “in love and mercy.” Without love we can’t understand our identity and grow as humans and persons; without mercy we can’t build a strong and lifelong relationship.
“Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me. Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 COR 12: 10)
Our Lord doesn’t expect from us perfection. He expects rather that we will totally put our trust in Him, “in order that the power of Christ may dwell in us.” Our weaknesses, all kinds of our “hardships and constraints” are just opportunities to call out “for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Thus says the LORD: On that day I will raise up the fallen hut of David;
I will wall up its breaches, raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old, that they may conquer what is left of Edom and all the nations that shall bear my name, say I, the LORD, who will do this.” (AM 9: 11-12)
Our marriages can be in ruins, destroyed and fallen, but God always protects us and always wants all the best for us. When we ask or when we fight for our marriages, He always can “wall up its breaches, raise up its ruins, and rebuild it.” Our Programs are part of the process of rebuilding our marriages. We come with our wounds and can go back refreshed and renewed.
“My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; I know them, and they follow me.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Yes, days are coming, says the Lord GOD, when I will send famine upon the land: Not a famine of bread, or thirst for water, but for hearing the word of the LORD. Then shall they wander from sea to sea and rove from the north to the east in search of the word of the LORD, but they shall not find it.” (AM 8: 11-12)
We are surrounded by words in news, texts, chats, emails, etc. We communicate with words, and we depend on them. But also, in these days, there is less and less present “the word of the Lord,” “the Word” Who is eliminated from public spaces, from schools and offices and from our communication with friends and family members. When we are faithful to our daily Bible meditation, we can delay these “days [that] are coming.”
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest, says the Lord.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, “Why do you harbor evil thoughts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”– he then said to the paralytic, ‘Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.’ He rose and went home.” (MT 9: 4-7)
Our Lord knows what is the most important for us. He knows that health has a value only when it leads to heaven; our relationship with Him is much, much more important, than our ability “to walk.” At the same moment, He wants for us all the best, and He wants our full integrity—when our bodies and souls are united in the desire to serve God.
“God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Seek good and not evil, that you may live; then truly will the LORD, the God of hosts, be with you as you claim! Hate evil and love good, and let justice prevail at the gate; then it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will have pity on the remnant of Joseph.” (AM 5: 14-15)
Our Lord wants to be with us forever and for all the time. The only obstacle or barrier comes not from Him, but from us, when we “seek evil and not good.” We are His beloved children, but when we try to live without Him, or like He never existed, we close the gate to our hearts and He can’t have pity on us.
“The Father willed to give us birth by the word of truth that we may be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. (Gospel Acclamation)
“Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.’ Thomas answered and said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.’” (JN 20: 27-29)
Thanks to St. Thomas the Apostle, we received another proof of Our Lord’s resurrection: “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” Being believers doesn’t mean that everything is simple or that we will never have doubts, but we can always answer, like St. Thomas, “My Lord and my God,” hoping that His blessing for “those who have not seen and believed” will reach us in a very special way.
“You believe in me, Thomas, because you have seen me, says the Lord; blessed are those who have not seen, but still believe!” (Gospel Acclamation)
“A scribe approached and said to him, ‘Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.’ Jesus answered him, ‘Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.’” (MT 8: 19-20)
When we decide to follow God’s will, like the scribe from today’s reading: “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go,” we need to be ready for the unexpected. If “the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head,” it could happened to us. We can plan a very stable life, but we can receive something totally different. An open heart and mind will help us “harden not our hearts” when we “hear his voice.”
“If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” (Gospel Acclamation)
