Category: 4th Week

Saturday, 4th Week of Lent

4/1/2017

Today’s Gospel Acclamation
Luke 8:15

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.

When Lent began we were all excited to start our Lenten practices, then life got in the way. But, there is no reason to get down on yourself. Today’s Gospel Acclamation gives us encouragement to persevere because a harvest will be reaped from our efforts.

Don’t be fooled today. The devil loves to fool us and lead us away from God by bringing us into desolation. One way he does this is by leading us to think only of ourselves: our mess-ups and failures, which leads us to beat ourselves up. But while we are upset with ourselves, we lose opportunities to serve others and to turn to God for help. A quiet, humble acceptance of our fault and a request for God to give us His strength will send the devil fleeing from us and bring back our peace of mind.

Maybe we did not completely go off course this Lent but we are cutting back from all that we planned on doing during this season. This causes us to lose clarity about what we are doing and we just give up doing anything out of confusion. Or maybe we mess up so much, we just give up out of sheer frustration. But our failures remind us that we need a Savior. It’s okay to mess up. This will prepare you even more for the hope Easter brings. Easter gives us hope that despite our shortcomings and failures, we too will rise to eternal life with Christ. Today, do something nice for someone else, whether that be opening a door for someone, helping someone cross the street, or simply extending a smile or helping hand. It is in service to others that we grow in love and “bear fruit through perseverance.”

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Friday, 4th Week of Lent

3/31/2017

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Today’s Gospel
John 7:1-2,10, 25-30

Jesus moved about within Galilee;
He did not wish to travel in Judea,
because the Jews were trying to kill Him.
But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.

But when His brothers had gone up to the feast,
He Himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret.

Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said,
"Is He not the one they are trying to kill?
And look, He is speaking openly and they say nothing to Him.
Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ?
But we know where He is from.
When the Christ comes, no one will know where He is from."
So Jesus cried out in the temple area as He was teaching and said,
"You know me and also know where I am from.
Yet I did not come on my own,
but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true.
I know Him, because I am from Him, and He sent me."
So they tried to arrest Him,
but no one laid a hand upon Him,
because His hour had not yet come.

Reflection
In today’s Gospel, we see Jesus and the apostles in Judea for the Feast of the Tabernacles. Jesus initially remained in secret because He knew the Pharisees wanted to kill Him. But then He put aside His intention of secrecy and began preaching to the large crowd of Jews gathered from all over the land of Israel.

Why does Jesus do this? Because God’s ways are higher than our own. Jesus may have wanted to remain a secret and avoid drawing attention to Himself, but God wanted Him to take advantage of the opportunity to spread His message to the crowd. Jesus acted out of obedience and with confidence because He knew it was all part of God’s greater plan and that His hour had not yet come. He set aside any human fear He might have had and acted as His Father wanted.

Think of your own life, do you restrain from acting charitably, courageously, or living your faith boldly because of fear? Maybe instead you tried to force your own will or was so focused on yourself that you got distracted from God’s plan. Due to our human nature it is natural for us to want to control things or to act in a way that is comfortable for us. Jesus did not do what was comfortable and safe, but Hw surrendered to God’s will. Today, pray to be more like Jesus in surrendering your fear, trusting God, and following how He is leading you.

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Thursday, 4th Week of Lent

3/30/2017

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Today's Reading
John 5:31-47

Jesus said to the Jews:
"If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true.
But there is another who testifies on my behalf,
and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.
You sent emissaries to John, and he testified to the truth.
I do not accept human testimony,
but I say this so that you may be saved.
He was a burning and shining lamp,
and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.
But I have testimony greater than John's.
The works that the Father gave me to accomplish,
these works that I perform testify on my behalf
that the Father has sent me.
Moreover, the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf.
But you have never heard his voice nor seen his form,
and you do not have his word remaining in you,
because you do not believe in the one whom he has sent.
You search the Scriptures,
because you think you have eternal life through them;
even they testify on my behalf.
But you do not want to come to me to have life.

"I do not accept human praise;
moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you.

I came in the name of my Father,
but you do not accept me;
yet if another comes in his own name,
you will accept him.
How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another
and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?
Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father:
the one who will accuse you is Moses,
in whom you have placed your hope.
For if you had believed Moses,
you would have believed me,
because he wrote about me.
But if you do not believe his writings,
how will you believe my words?"

Reflection
Jesus is confident in His mission and lays everything out there for the Jews to either accept or discard. “I came in the name of my Father, but you do not accept me." Jesus explains over and over again that He is the one about whom the prophets wrote, the one for whom John the Baptist was preparing the way, all of scripture has prepared the Israelites for this moment but in their pride, they refuse to accept it. We find ourselves in this same boat at times.

Too often we fall back on our knowledge of scripture, our degrees, our good works, and how much we know about the faith. This is not what Christ wants from us. Jesus wants a relationship. He wants us to believe in Him. He is the truth. He is the way. He is the life. Everything points to Him. We focus too much on the things we do, the books we read and the charitable causes to which we are dedicated. While these are great things to have in our life, it is not the most important. How is our personal relationship with the resurrected and living Christ? How often are we just sitting and speaking with Him? This is what Lent is all about.

Let us take some time to bring into focus our priorities; why are we doing the things we are doing in our life? Let us read the scripture understanding that it is speaking of the person of Christ. Let us do our good works recognizing we are serving the person of Christ. Let us give, love and serve knowing that it is Christ who loved and served first. Today, spend 10 minutes in silence, at the end of those 10 minutes, speak to Jesus from your heart asking Him to once again become the center of your life and the motivation for all that you do.

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Wednesday, 4th Week of Lent

3/29/2017

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Today's Reading
Isaiah 49:8-15

Thus says the LORD:
In a time of favor I answer you,
on the day of salvation I help you;
and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people,
To restore the land
and allot the desolate heritages,
Saying to the prisoners: Come out!
To those in darkness: Show yourselves!
Along the ways they shall find pasture,
on every bare height shall their pastures be.
They shall not hunger or thirst,
nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them;
For he who pities them leads them
and guides them beside springs of water.
I will cut a road through all my mountains,
and make my highways level.
See, some shall come from afar,
others from the north and the west,
and some from the land of Syene.

Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth,
break forth into song, you mountains.
For the LORD comforts His people
and shows mercy to His afflicted.

But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me."
Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.

Reflection
Today’s first reading reminds us that although we may forget about God, God never forgets us. The prophet Isaiah is writing to the Jews in Exile reminding them that God has not forgotten them. He will restore them to their land and they shall want for nothing. He did not forsake them and He does not forsake you.

How often do we pray to God and grow impatient and frustrated when our prayers are not answered right when we want them to be? This can make us feel as though the Lord has forgotten about us. We pray and seek, but God does not respond. He never fails to answer prayers. Remember, “No” is an answer too. We so easily forget that God is all knowing all powerful and we must place all our trust in Him and His perfect timing.

Despite life’s circumstance or our own failures and weaknesses, we have a God who is all loving and merciful who desires to be united with us. There will be many ups and downs in life, many unknowns and much suffering, but there is great peace in knowing that we are not alone. God is with us through it all. We hold steadfast to His promises that, “the LORD comforts His people and shows mercy to His afflicted.” His love for us is infinite and He will not forsake us. He will never forget us and He holds us in the palm of His hands. Today, spend 15 extra minutes in prayer thanking God for His presence and love in your life.

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Tuesday, 4th Week of Lent

3/28/2017

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Today's Reading
John 5:1-16
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate
a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and knew that he had been ill for a long time, He said to him,
"Do you want to be well?"
The sick man answered Him,
"Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool
when the water is stirred up;
while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me."
Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk."
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.

Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured,
"It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat."
He answered them, "The man who made me well told me,
'Take up your mat and walk.'"
They asked him,
"Who is the man who told you, 'Take it up and walk'?"
The man who was healed did not know who it was,
for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,
"Look, you are well; do not sin any more,
so that nothing worse may happen to you."
The man went and told the Jews
that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus
because He did this on a sabbath.

Reflection

In today’s Gospel, Jesus heals a man who had been ill for thirty-eight years. What a miracle! In this scene we can see how the healing waters of Bethesda foreshadow the healing powers found in the sacraments. There is true grace and healing that comes from the sacraments. May we use this time of Lent to receive them as much as possible so we may be strengthened in our own faith and healed of the wounds within us. Just like those in the reading who sought physical healing, we too are in need of healing in our own lives, whether that be physical, spiritual or emotional. In order to be healed, we must bring our wounds to the feet of Jesus.

The miraculous healings performed by Jesus are signs of the complete healing that takes place. God’s healing is always that of the whole person. The key element in this passage is when Jesus asks the man: “Do you want to be well?” We must open our hearts and dispose ourselves to the healing that Jesus wants to give or we cannot begin to receive it. This man had waited for a very long time but because of his patience and faith, he was ready to accept what Jesus wanted to freely give him.

When Jesus sees the man in the temple, He reminds him that he must go forth having been healed and sin no more. When we experience the healing power of God’s mercy, we must also make a firm promise not to fall back into our old ways and for this we rely on the healing transformation that has taken place, which is the strength of Christ. Our hope is in Christ who has come to heal us of all that prevents us from accepting His love. Today, in prayer, ask the Blessed Mother for the grace to have your heart opened so that you may be ready to receive the healing power of Jesus’s love into your soul.

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Monday, 4th Week of Lent

3/27/2017

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Today's Reading
John 4: 43-54
At that time Jesus left [Samaria] for Galilee.
For Jesus himself testified
that a prophet has no honor in His native place.
When He came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed Him,
since they had seen all He had done in Jerusalem at the feast;
for they themselves had gone to the feast.

Then He returned to Cana in Galilee,
where He had made the water wine.
Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum.
When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea,
he went to Him and asked Him to come down
and heal his son, who was near death.
Jesus said to him,
"Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe."
The royal official said to him,
"Sir, come down before my child dies."
Jesus said to him, "You may go; your son will live."
The man believed what Jesus said to him and left.
While the man was on his way back,
his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live.
He asked them when he began to recover.
They told him,
"The fever left him yesterday, about one in the afternoon."
The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him,
"Your son will live,"
and he and his whole household came to believe.
Now this was the second sign Jesus did
when he came to Galilee from Judea.

Reflection
Jesus is always giving us signs and working wonders, but we often do not acknowledge them, for we think they came from another source. When we do not receive what we expected, we claim that God does not care about us, or even exist. In our pride, we are convinced we know what is best and God should act only as we see fit. How often do we want Him to wow us with what we want, but then want to be left alone from what He asks of us? It is only when we believe and allow the Lord to open our eyes, that we are able to see the miracles He is continuously working around us and through us. Seeing strengthens our belief, but believing is what makes us see.

The man in today’s Gospel went far out of his way, from Capernaum to Cana in pursuit of Jesus. He must have possessed such faith in Jesus, or why would he have left his suffering son? If those in his household did not believe, would they have been upset he left or think he was foolish? Because he had the courage to go anyways, he becomes a great example for us. He believed, he asked, and he received.The man had no proof that his son had been healed, but he returned home as Jesus told him. Only on his way, does he learn his son was healed at the precise hour Jesus said. Jesus could have chosen to heal the child at any time, but He chose a time that would lead to further conviction, not just for the man, but for his entire household.

In our own lives, God’s perfect timing sometimes results in an immediate response and other times it may take some time before His Power is made manifest, but it is always when it is best. If we do not believe God has responded to our prayer, then we should first ask Him what it is He desires to show us. Today, instead of praying out of selfishness, let us ask the Lord to mold our desires to His. When we do this, we will always be satisfied with His response, for His will becomes our own. If we seek Jesus, regardless of what suffering we may be called to endure along the way, there will always be peace, joy, and strength from a greater good.

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4th Sunday of Lent - Blind Man from Birth

3/26/2017

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Today's Gospel
John 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38

As Jesus passed by He saw a man blind from birth.
He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva,
and smeared the clay on his eyes, and said to him,
"Go wash in the Pool of Siloam" — which means Sent —.
So he went and washed, and came back able to see.

His neighbors and those who had seen him earlier as a beggar said,
"Isn't this the one who used to sit and beg?"
Some said, "It is, "
but others said, "No, he just looks like him."
He said, "I am."

They brought the one who was once blind to the Pharisees.
Now Jesus had made clay and opened his eyes on a sabbath.
So then the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see.
He said to them,
"He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see."
So some of the Pharisees said,
"This man is not from God,
because He does not keep the sabbath."
But others said,
"How can a sinful man do such signs?"
And there was a division among them.
So they said to the blind man again,
"What do you have to say about Him,
since He opened your eyes?"
He said, "He is a prophet."

They answered and said to him,
"You were born totally in sin,
and are you trying to teach us?"
Then they threw him out.

When Jesus heard that they had thrown him out,
He found him and said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"
He answered and said,
"Who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"
Jesus said to him,
"You have seen Him, and
the one speaking with you is He."
He said,
"I do believe, Lord," and he worshiped Him.

Reflection
Mary Jean Jones is a wife to her husband Trevor and a mother to her son Shepherd. Just this month, they welcomed their newest baby girl Reagan into their family with joy. Mary Jean graduated from Ave Maria University in 2011 with her Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature and Theology. She also pursued post Baccalaureate Studies in Art in Florence, Italy.

All content is created by "Array of Hope". If you would like to directly receive all of the content created by this ministry you can sign up at www.arrayofhope.net

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4th Sunday of Lent - Blind Man from Birth

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