John the Baptist speaks with fiery eloquence, urging the people to prepare for the one who will baptize with fire. In light of his words, may we take the opportunity today to honestly reflect on our lives and confess our sins in preparation for the coming of Christ.
Mass Readings – 2nd Sunday of Advent
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Study: Is there anything keeping you from God or another person right now? What steps do you need to take to make it right?
Pray: Call upon the Lord for the strength to repent and seek forgiveness. Remember – the harder it is the more powerful the healing!
Serve: Is there some way you can be an agent of forgiveness? How can you bring people closer to God and one another?
Mass Readings – 2nd Sunday of Advent
John the Baptist comes on the scene blazing like a torch as he exhorts the people to repent of their sins. He minces no words with the Pharisees and Sadduccees; rather, he makes it clear that the path to God leads through the good fruit of our actions.
John is blunt and direct. There is no spin in his message, no soft touch. He comes to us as a verbal bulldozer, seeking to carve out a direct route that leads to the Lord. I can only imagine what it was like to be in his presence, eager to hear his words yet feeling the sting of his speech. After all, repentance is a great thing to talk about…but often painful to put into practice.
And yet nothing brings about healing faster than forgiveness. When relationships are wounded and we find ourselves in a broken and fragile place, repentance clears the ground and allows us to rebuild our lives in an honest and direct fashion.
Repentance has some key components:
As we prepare in this Advent season for the birth of the Messiah, we have the opportunity to examine our hearts and consider what is not worthy of the Lord. Using a good examination of conscience or just the common sense in our souls we have the chance today to repent of our sins, seek forgiveness from God and one another, and live each day in the light and power of Christ.
John tells us that while he baptizes for repentance, the Lord will baptize us in Spirit and fire – allowing us to draw into the very heart of God’s love. Only through repentance will we be able to encounter the burning intensity of divine charity; for when we stand before the Lord whatever is not fitting will burn away. May we cast out whatever is not worthy, and prepare to welcome His holy fire with open hearts.
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Note: This post was first published on November 28, 2016.
The Lord makes makes it clear (repeating his exhortation twice) that it is crucial for his disciples to repent of their sins. May we take a hard and honest look within, and ask the Lord for grace we need to live in his love.
Mass Readings – Saturday of the 29th Week of the Year
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Jonah’s message of repentance transformed the people of Nineveh. We, too, can be changed as we acknowledge each day whatever keeps us from the love of Jesus Christ, repenting of our sins and receiving God’s grace.
Mass Readings – Tuesday of the 27th Week of the Year
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The Lord reproaches the people of Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum because they did not repent when they witnessed the mighty acts of God. We, too, have been given much by God; will we turn to the Lord and live?
Mass Readings – Tuesday of the 15th Week of the Year
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Like the encounter between Moses and God, life changing moments can happen in the blink of an eye, yet leave an impact that redefines us. The same thing happens when we carry out the command of the Lord as we repent of our sins.
Mass Readings – 3rd Sunday of Lent
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Jesus refers to the Book of Jonah as he speaks to the people about the need for repentance. We, too, have the opportunity every day to repent and call upon the Lord for the grace we need to follow as his disciples.
Mass Readings – Wednesday of the 1st Week of Lent
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Recognizing our sins and asking for forgiveness challenges us to honestly acknowledge our faults and humbly ask for help. While this is not easy, this process puts us in right relationship with the Lord and one another…allowing us to grow in maturity, wisdom and love.
Mass Readings – Thursday of the 31st Week of the Year
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Jesus speaks about the cities that heard his message and rejected it. Their punishment is the result of the natural consequence of not repenting. The point for us is sobering; we have been given so much…does it inspire us to draw near to the Lord?
Mass Readings – Tuesday of the 15th Week of the Year
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Study: Reflect on a time when you willingly took on a hard task with joy. What gave you courage to begin?
Pray: Is there something that needs to change in your life? Pray for the grace to begin again.
Serve: How can you help someone make a change for the good?
Mass Readings – 3rd Sunday of Easter
The season of Easter offers us many opportunities to celebrate and rejoice. After all, the light of the Risen Lord brings hope, courage and strength to all who call upon the name of Jesus. Take a look at a quick overview of these readings:
Why all this talk of repentance? First and foremost, because we need it. The Good News of the resurrection of Jesus Christ brings light to the darkness of death and sin. Easter does not downplay the call to turn away from sin; rather, we have renewed hope that in Christ’s victory on the Cross we are empowered to face our weaknesses with God’s grace.
The light of the resurrection shines in our hearts…and sometimes we need to clean out what’s in there. We might not like it, might try to avoid it, but in the end we stand before the Lord and acknowledge that all that we have is sustained by His love.
Here’s my point: this holy season offers us a chance to draw near to Christ – who knows us better than we know ourselves – and receive his mercy for our sins. All that’s required is our acknowledgement for what we’ve done, make a change to live for the Lord and then receive the forgiveness that flows from the Sacred Heart.
Repentance is a lifetime work. There will be days when we follow the Lord with joy and conviction; then again there will be days when we fail miserably. What matters most is that we continue to seek Jesus with all our heart and strive to live our lives in the light of his resurrection.
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