Tag Archive for ‘self’
Wednesday 13 February
ASH WEDNESDAY Joel 2:12-18, Ps.51, 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2, Matthew 6:1-6,16-18 Turn back to Me How do I regard Lent? Maybe as a penitential time, a time for self-denial, fasting, prayer? Lent is all these things but if we concentrate solely on them we miss a great blessing. Lent is a time to hear the call […]
Saturday 9th February
Hebrews 13:15-17, 20-21, Ps.23, Mark 6:30-34 Sheep without a shepherd Even Jesus needed time to be alone and to rest, and he knew his disciples needed it too. How they must have looked forward to that quiet space, and how the disciples must have resented the intrusion of all the needy people who followed them. […]
BLESS ME FATHER, FOR I’M A GOOD BLOKE
DOES anyone else share this problem? Often, when I do the right thing – as opposed to what I would much rather do – I am very conscious of my behaviour. Worse, the awareness will frequently revisit me. I would prefer, and indeed I have petitioned my Maker in this regard, to be unconscious of […]
Sunday, 25 November
OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, UNIVERSAL KING Psalm 93, Daniel 7: 13-14, Revelation 1: 5-8, John 18: 33-37 Humble King This passage highlights many aspects- Pilate, under pressure, attempts to force an answer, but Jesus reverses Pilate’s question and so demonstrates his insincerity. At no stage does Jesus victoriously assert His Kingship. His plan will not […]
Friday 16 November
Psalm 119A, 2 John 4-9, Luke 17:26-37 God is not mocked Our familiarity with these stern warnings of Jesus may blind us to their central reality, but he touches on a very prevalent modern trend –the accumulation of wealth and riches, as if “eating and drinking, buying and selling “ constituted the reason for our […]
Wednesday 24 October
Canticle Isaiah 12:1-6, Ephesians 3:2-12, Luke 12:39-48 Bucket list? The “Bucket List” movie, the book “100 Things to do Before you Die”, and the adage “You’re a long time dead”, all suggest that when reflecting on our mortality we should focus on self satisfaction, self achievement and as many pleasurable experiences as we can pack […]
Friday 31 August
Ps 33; 1 Corinthians 1:17-25; Matthew 25:1-13 Be prepared Again Jesus warns – “Stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” I like what Thomas à Kempis suggests, do you – “You should so master your self in every act and thought as if you were about to die this very day”?
Saturday 2 June
Jude 17:20-25; Ps 63; Mark 11:27-33 “God's authority trancends all others” Accepting God's authority in all things, requires us to put our faith and trust in him. There is no need to question him, as God is love, and through him all things were made and all sins are forgiven. Rather than insult him with […]
Friday 1 June
St Justin 1 Peter 4:7-13; Ps 96; Mark 11:11-26 “Be not afraid., I go before you always.” The popularised “end of the world” is depicted as an event without hope. Maybe this sells movies, but hopelessness is contrary to the promise of God’s kingdom. St Peter, Christ’s rock, tells us to be clear-minded and self-controlled […]
Wednesday 23 May
Acts 20:28-38, Ps 68, John 17:11-19 The gift of tears Evagrius of Ponticus suggests that we “…pray for the gift of tears to soften by compunction the inherent hardness of your soul.” Paul shed tears. I shed tears at the drop of a hat: tragedies in the media; random recollections; soppy movies and poignant music; […]
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