Isaiah 55:10-11; Psalm 34:4-7, 16-19; Matthew 6:7-15 Your heavenly Father knows what you need... This is how you are to pray. (Mt 6:8, 9) 1st Week of Lent Do you believe that Gods word has power to change and transform your life today? Isaiah says that Gods word is like the rain and melting snow which makes the barren ground spring to life and become abundantly fertile (Is 55:10-11). Gods word has power to penetrate our dry barren hearts and make them springs of new life. If we let Gods word take root in our heart it will transform us into the likeness of God himself and empower us to walk in his way of love and holiness. God wants his word to guide and shape the way we think, act, and pray. Ambrose (339-397 AD), an early church father and bishop of Milan, wrote that the reason we should devote time for reading Scripture is to hear Christ speak to us. Are you not occupied with Christ? Why do you not talk with him? By reading the Scriptures, we listen to Christ. We can approach God confidently because he is waiting with arms wide open to receive his prodigal sons and daughters. That is why Jesus gave his disciples the perfect prayer that dares to call God, Our Father. This prayer teaches us how to ask God for the things we really need, the things that matter not only for the present but for eternity as well. We can approach God our Father with confidence and boldness because the Lord Jesus has opened the way to heaven for us through his death and resurrection. When we ask God for help, he fortunately does not give us what we deserve. Instead, God responds with grace, mercy, and loving-kindness. He is good and forgiving towards us, and he expects us to treat our neighbor the same. God has poured his love into our hearts through the gift of the Holy Spirit who has been given to us (Rom 5:5). And that love is like a refining fire - it purifies and burns away all prejudice, hatred, resentment, vengeance, and bitterness until there is nothing left but goodness and forgiveness towards those who cause us grief or harm. Excerpts from the reflections of St. Francis of Assisi on the Lord’s Prayer: “Our Father, who art in heaven - in the angels and the saints, giving them light to know you since you, Lord, are light; setting them afire to love you, since you, Lord, are love; dwelling in them and giving them fullness of joy; since you, Lord, are the supreme, eternal good, and all good comes from you. “Hallowed be thy name! - May we grow to know you better and better and so appreciate the extent of your favours, the scope of your promises, the sublimity of your majesty, and the profundity of your judgments. “Thy kingdom come - so that you may reign in us by your grace, and bring us to your kingdom, where we shall see you clearly, love you perfectly, and, happy in your company, enjoy you forever. “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven - so that we may love you with all our heart, by always having you in mind; with all our soul, by always longing for you; with all of our mind, by determining to seek your glory in everything; and with all our strength, of body and soul, by lovingly serving you alone. May we love our neighbors as ourselves and encourage them all to love you, by bearing our share in the joys and sorrows of others, while giving offense to no one. “Give us this day our daily bread - your beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, so that we may remember and appreciate how much he loved us, and everything he said and did and suffered. “And forgive us our trespasses - in your immeasurable mercy, by virtue of the passion of your Son, and through the intercession of Mary and all your saints. “As we forgive those who trespass against us - and if we do not forgive perfectly, Lord, make us forgive perfectly, so that for love of you, we may really forgive our enemies and fervently pray to you for them, returning to no one evil for evil, by trying to serve you in everyone. “And lead us not into temptation - be it hidden or obvious, sudden or persistent. “But deliver us from evil - past, present or future. Amen.” “Jesus, thank you for teaching me to pray!” Amen.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 07:52:14 +0000
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