“And will not God vindicate his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (LK 18: 7-8)
If prayer is not an action but a relationship, then God wants us to be connected with Him, united with Him, and not just a responding-to-wishes-person. This is the way every relationship was meant to be: to be united, to be close, to be in love. You can’t be just united only on days or nights; it is about being in every singular moment together. Every marriage understands this.
“God has called us through the Gospel, to possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Or if they were struck by their might and energy, let them from these things realize how much more powerful is he who made them. For from the greatness and the beauty of created things their original author, by analogy, is seen.” (WIS 13: 4-5)
Every relationship can understand something about God because we were created in His image and likeness. God is love, so when we love, we learn about Him. This happens in a very special way within marriages. Every spouse in love learns about God, Who is love and also Who is a Father. Married couples experience this with every intimacy—to express their love and openness to a new life. True love has no end and always grows, so married love has no end and always grows.
“Stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“And she, who is one, can do all things, and renews everything while herself perduring; And passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of God and prophets.” (WIS 7: 27)
Every relationship has difficult moments, every relationship can be stained or in crisis for a moment or moments, but also every relationship can be restored and renewed when we invite into our lives God’s wisdom. When we pray to God asking for help on how to love better and wiser, He always answers our prayers.
“I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord: whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.” (LK 17: 15-16)
How important it is to be grateful. When we are grateful, we see everything in the right perspective: we are loved, God takes care of us, people are to be loved and not used, we are who we are and we protect our relationships. When we write daily our gratitudes, we become more conscious of how much we receive daily, and we change the way we see the world.
“In all circumstances, give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’” (LK 17: 10)
What we are obliged to do? Go to work? Pray? Take care of our children? Or—take care of our relationship? to spend a good quality time together? You are a married couple; you are called to be spouses—this is the first and the most important obligation. Prayer, work, and parenting are also important, but, depending on your main vocation, you pray as a husband and wife, you work as a husband and wife, you are parents because you are husband and wife. First things first.
“Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Take heed to yourselves; if your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him; and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” (LK 17: 3-4)
How weak we are, how often we fail, how many times we can harm our brothers and sisters, our relatives, even our spouses; not because we are so bad, or evil but because this is part of our broken nature. When we repent, when we ask for forgiveness, when we never give up and always want to be better—there is a hope for us.
“Shine like lights in the world, as you hold on to the word of life.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word. Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed on and triumph, as it did among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men; for not all have faith.” (2 TES 2:16-3:2)
We need to protect our environment; we need to protect our families and our marriages from “wicked and evil men.” On the contrary, the contemporary culture doesn’t support our values and doesn’t support our marriages. This is why we need to meet regularly with other couples who think the same way; this is why we need marriage harbor.
“Jesus Christ is the firstborn of the dead; to him be glory and power, forever and ever.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“You are God’s building. According to the grace of God given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But each one must be careful how he builds upon it, for no one can lay a foundation other than the one that is there, namely, Jesus Christ.” (1 COR 3: 9-11)
It is so good to remember always that we are created by God, Who is love, and we are “God’s building.” We can have our difficult past, our wounds, our bad memories, but it is good to remember that “no one can lay a foundation other than the one who is there, namely, Jesus Christ,” Who is our Redeemer, our Love and the One Who came to take on His shoulder all our wounds, bad memories, and difficult past. We are God’s building.
“I have chosen and consecrated this house, says the Lord, that my name may be there forever.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“I myself am convinced about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to admonish one another.” (ROM 15: 14)
It is so good when we have somebody who looks at us in the same way as did St. Paul: “I myself am convinced about you, my brothers and sisters, that you yourself are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge.” When we have an environment which recognizes our goodness, we grow, we develop, and we love more and more.
“Whoever keeps the word of Christ, the love of God is truly perfected in him.” (Gospel Acclamation)
“Why then do you judge your brother or sister? Or you, why do you look down on your brother or sister? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written: As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bend before me, and every tongue shall give praise to God. So then each of us shall give an account of himself to God.” (ROM 14: 9-12)
This is our beginning – the beginning of every Program, of every step, and every strategy—stop changing our spouses. Let’s start with changing ourselves. It is much easier to “look down on your brother or sister” and “judge your brother and sister.” With our Programs, we want to change this world for a better place in which to live; where we change for the good of our spouses and love them unconditionally.
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest, says the Lord.” (Gospel Acclamation)
