GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY - Wednesday, September 14, 2016

 Wednesday - September 14, 2016

“What we need most in order to make progress is to be silent before this great God with our appetite and with our tongue, for the language he best hears is silent love.”

~~St. John of the Cross

TODAY'S READINGS

 

September 7, 2016

 

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Wednesday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 439

Reading 11 COR 7:25-31

Brothers and sisters:
In regard to virgins, I have no commandment from the Lord,
but I give my opinion as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.
So this is what I think best because of the present distress:
that it is a good thing for a person to remain as he is.
Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek a separation.
Are you free of a wife? Then do not look for a wife.
If you marry, however, you do not sin,
nor does an unmarried woman sin if she marries;
but such people will experience affliction in their earthly life,
and I would like to spare you that.

I tell you, brothers, the time is running out.
From now on, let those having wives act as not having them,
those weeping as not weeping, 
those rejoicing as not rejoicing,
those buying as not owning,
those using the world as not using it fully.
For the world in its present form is passing away.

Responsorial PsalmPS 45:11-12, 14-15, 16-17

R. (11) Listen to me, daughter; see and bend your ear.
Hear, O daughter, and see; turn your ear,
forget your people and your father’s house.
So shall the king desire your beauty;
for he is your lord, and you must worship him.
R. Listen to me, daughter; see and bend your ear.
All glorious is the king’s daughter as she enters;
her raiment is threaded with spun gold.
In embroidered apparel she is borne in to the king;
behind her the virgins of her train are brought to you.
R. Listen to me, daughter; see and bend your ear.
They are borne in with gladness and joy;
they enter the palace of the king.
The place of your fathers your sons shall have;
you shall make them princes through all the land.
R. Listen to me, daughter; see and bend your ear.

AlleluiaLK 6:23AB

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Rejoice and leap for joy!
Your reward will be great in heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelLK 6:20-26

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
for the Kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man.

Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!
Behold, your reward will be great in heaven. 
For their ancestors treated the prophets
in the same way.

But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
But woe to you who are filled now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for their ancestors treated the false 
prophets in this way.”

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GOD SO LOVES ME

Introductory Prayer: Your word in the Gospel reveals to me the beauty of the mystery of the Cross. I open myself now to you with a believing heart. Your love for humanity is so present in what you say. You give me hope that the world can be changed by your message of love. I want to be more like you, a lover of the Father, a lover of my brothers and sisters to the point of giving my life for them.

Petition: Lord, exalt the cross in my mind and my heart, that I might see it as an instrument of love.

1. Jesus’ Identity: Nicodemus comes to Jesus to find out who this miracle worker is. Jesus tells him that he is the Son of Man and God’s Son. He has come down from heaven and will return there. Now that he has identified himself, he has gotten Nicodemus’ attention and mine. His answer to the first question does not satisfy us because it has brought up several other questions. How can he claim to be the Son of God when there is but one God? If he is truly God’s Son, why has he come down to earth? What does he want or expect from me?

2. A Savior Greater Than Moses: Moses had, at God’s command, led Israel out of slavery in Egypt. When the people rebelled in the desert, they were punished by fiery serpents that bit them with poisonous venom. Moses intervened on their behalf, making a bronze image of a serpent, placed on a post; those who looked at it were saved. Jesus saves humanity from its rebellion, not by a symbol raised on a stick, but by sacrificing himself as he was raised on a cross. He saves me not from temporal death, but from eternal death. He is indeed a Savior greater than Moses.

3. The Degree of God’s Love: How much does the Father love me? If we could measure love on a thermometer, God’s infinite love would send the mercury out the end. His love is boundless. What would he withhold from me if he has already given his son to save me? My sentiments upon contemplating the immensity of God’s love for me should be gratitude, praise and a reciprocating love towards him.

Conversation with Christ: Lord, I am moved when I discover how much you love me. You came down from heaven, becoming the Son of Man so that I could know, love and imitate you. You loved me to the extreme of offering yourself up on the cross to save me from sin and death. I want to love you in return to the point of giving my life for you.

Resolution: I will contemplate the cross as a symbol of love, making it a symbol that says something to me whenever I see it. I will try to bear my cross today with love.

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God Bless You.....

KONKANI PRAYER GROUP - Abu Dhabi

"Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone"  Mark 16:15