GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY : Friday - September 09, 2022

Friday - September 09, 2022

Think well. 

Speak well. 

Do well. 

These three things, through the mercy of God, 

will make a man go to Heaven. 

~~ St. Camillus de Lellis

September 9, 2022

Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, Priest
Lectionary: 441

 

Reading 1                                                     1 COR 9:16-19, 22B-27

 

Brothers and sisters:

If I preach the Gospel, this is no reason for me to boast,

for an obligation has been imposed on me,

and woe to me if I do not preach it!

If I do so willingly, I have a recompense,

but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.

What then is my recompense?

That, when I preach, I offer the Gospel free of charge

so as not to make full use of my right in the Gospel.

 

Although I am free in regard to all,

I have made myself a slave to all

so as to win over as many as possible.

I have become all things to all, to save at least some.

All this I do for the sake of the Gospel,

so that I too may have a share in it.

 

Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race,

but only one wins the prize?

Run so as to win.

Every athlete exercises discipline in every way.

They do it to win a perishable crown,

but we an imperishable one.

Thus I do not run aimlessly;

I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.

No, I drive my body and train it,

for fear that, after having preached to others,

I myself should be disqualified.

 

Responsorial Psalm                                              PS 84:3, 4, 5-6, 12

 

R. (2) How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!

 

My soul yearns and pines

for the courts of the LORD.

My heart and my flesh

cry out for the living God.

R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!

Even the sparrow finds a home,

and the swallow a nest

in which she puts her young—

Your altars, O LORD of hosts,

my king and my God!

R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!

Blessed they who dwell in your house!

continually they praise you.

Blessed the men whose strength you are!

their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.

R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!

For a sun and a shield is the LORD God;

grace and glory he bestows;

The LORD withholds no good thing

from those who walk in sincerity.

R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!

 

Alleluia                                                                      JN 17:17B, 17A

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your word, O Lord, is truth;

consecrate us in the truth.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

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.”

 

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Trusting the Creativity of God in Bad Times

The reading from today’s second reading reminds us that all things work together for the good of those who love God. Even the bad things that happen to us will get put to good use if we entrust them to the creativity of our all-powerful, mercifully loving God.

 

The Jews who read or heard the recitation of Jesus’ genealogy in today’s Gospel reading saw this spiritual principle illustrated. The list of Christ’s ancestors demonstrated that the Messiah came from a long line of sinners. The point of this reading: Despite the errors of the people, God accomplished his salvation plans.

 

For example, everyone knew that Jacob tricked Essau into selling his birthright. If Jacob had behaved himself, Essau would have become the family’s patriarch and the genealogical line would have gone off in a different direction. But Jacob became one of the founding fathers of Judaism. From his line came Joseph, the husband of Mary. If Essau had become head of the family, would Joseph still have been the foster father of the Messiah?

 

God’s plans are always accomplished, eventually, one way or another. By putting God in charge of our lives, rather than taking matters into our own hands out of frustration and impatience, realizing that his timing is always perfect, and remembering that his plans are always good, we realize that we can and should have hope and joy, even while we suffer in the moment of today’s trials.

 

God has fun making good come from evil. I can picture him smirking at Satan and saying (like we did as children when we tricked the bullies), “Nah-nah, nah-nah-nah! You didn’t get your way after all. I’m bigger than you are!”

 

What mishaps have discouraged you? What sins have diverted your path from God’s plans? What problems have other people caused you? What mistakes have you made that you strongly wish had never happened?

 

Is God bigger than these? Does he care about you enough to make them useful for your growth? Does he want to make them work as blessings so that he can achieve another victory for his kingdom? Of course yes!

 

Is God imaginative enough to find a way to do what seems impossible? Of course yes!

 

So, why are you limiting your hopes to what only seems possible in your limited perspective? God enjoys doing the unexpected. He enjoys surprising us. And yet, we should not be surprised that he wants to turn bad times into blessings.

 

Consider what we celebrate today, September 8th. Mary was born without the effects of Original Sin so that she could later carry God in her totally human womb. If the Divine Father of Mary could do the impossible once for the sake of his salvation plan, he can do it again and again. And he wants to!

 

God makes all things work together for the good of those who love him and respond to his calling to serve his purposes. You have been called. Do not worry about things that go wrong, for God will develop awesome plans from them and despite them.

 

 

Today's Prayer

 

Thank You, my Lord, because You renew everything and You want to give me the opportunity to write a new and wonderful story for my life with you. Amen.

 

God Bless You.....

The Rosary Family

The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”