Monday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time

“I TELL YOU TRULY, THIS POOR WIDOW PUT IN MORE THAN ALL THE REST.” LK 21:1-4

Humbly submit your will to God (Thy Will be done) and consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through Mary and Joseph.

Prayer Prompt before reading LK 21:1-4: Come, Holy Spirit, teach me how to pray, interpret the Scriptures for me so that I may know the Truth about who God the Father and God the Son are so that I may know who I am.

As Jesus continues to denounce the Scribes and Pharisees, He teaches all of us today that material possessions do not make us holy. A total dependence on God, as Mary taught us with her “Yes” at the Annunciation (Fiat, Totus Tuus-Totally Yours), makes us holy or blessed.

When I ask married couples what the most important part of their relationship is, it is not money or material possessions. Money does make things easier and gifts are nice, but having someone to share memories with, pray with, give and receive, take care of and be taken care of, to love and be loved are the most important things in a relationship. So it is with God. He wants us to trust Him and depend on Him like a child trusts his parents and like spouses rely on each other.

Bishop Barron says,

“Do you remember the parable about the foolish rich man? When his barns were filled with all his possessions, he decided to tear them down and build bigger ones. Why is he a fool? Because (and I want you to repeat this to yourself as I say it) you have everything you need right now to be happy.

What makes you happy is always right in front of you because what makes you happy is love. Love is willing the good of the other, opening yourself to the world around you. Love is not a feeling. It’s an act of the will. It is the great act of dispossession.”

These are great lessons as we prepare our souls for Christmas with Advent.

Today’s challenge: May we not focus too much on the material things, but look for ways to grow in holiness and improve our relationships with those God put into our lives. Accept your own brokenness and give it to God, then accept others’ brokenness and have compassion on them.

Be a servant, be a saint today!
#Christian YODO (You Only Die Once; We will live again!)