Tagged: promise of the day

MARY MAJOR

“If a man wishes to come after Me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross, and begin to follow in My footsteps.” –Matthew 16:24 To be disciples of Jesus, we must deny ourselves and take up His cross daily (Lk 9:23). In effect, we must lose our lives (Mt 16:25). We no longer operate independently, but obediently. We don’t do our thing, but His thing. We have been crucified with Christ and the lives we live are no longer our own (Gal 2:19-20). Although the cost of discipleship is so high, deep down we sense that only...

LOVE LOVES ME

“With age-old love I have loved you.” –Jeremiah 31:3 God the Father has loved us into being. There has never been a moment when we have not been loved perfectly by Him. He loves us so much that He has sent His eternally begotten Son to die for us (Jn 3:16). He has also given us the Holy Spirit, the eternal Fruit of the love of the Father and the Son. We are loved with a divine, constant, perfect, crucified, unconditional, and infinite love. Beloved, it is impossible for us to be loved more. Yet we can “grasp fully, with...

SINKER

“Lord, if it is really You, tell me to come to You across the water.” –Matthew 14:28 “Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water, moving toward Jesus” (Mt 14:29). Peter became afraid and began to sink. After pulling him up, Jesus exclaimed: “How little faith you have!…Why did you falter?” (Mt 14:31) If Jesus was disappointed in Peter’s little faith, what about the faith of those who were still in the boat? If Jesus is displeased with those sinking in the water, what about those who are working their way up to sinking? “When...

STRETCHING EXERCISES

“Jesus said to them: ‘There is no need for them to disperse. Give them something to eat yourselves.’ ” –Matthew 14:16 A large crowd, a deserted place, and a shortage of food – Jesus’ disciples recognize that a problem is developing. In fact, they have even worked out a reasonable solution (Mt 14:15). They want Jesus to fix the problem according to their plan. But Jesus has a different approach. He says, “Give them something to eat yourselves” (Mt 14:16). Jesus wants His disciples to fix the problem according to His plan. Jesus’ plan was to multiply loaves and fish...

A BOMB

“Relax! Eat heartily, drink well. Enjoy yourself.” –Luke 12:19 The late Fr. Rick Thomas said that the verse quoted above, Luke 12:19, is the most obeyed verse in the Bible. However, God’s reaction to those who live out this verse is: “You fool! This very night your life shall be required of you. To whom will all this piled-up wealth of yours go?” (Lk 12:20) The Lord does not consider the “good life” of relaxation and enjoyment to be that good. This comes as a shock to us who have been taught to base our lives on, and save our...