Thank the Lord that His ways and thoughts are very different than ours (Is 55:9). Thank Him that He doesn't agree with us or humor us. He just tells us the truth even if it's beyond us, even if it also contradicts what our culture has told us. God's revelation won't fit our ways of thinking, so we either submit to it or reject it.
For example, the Lord, speaking through Paul, says: "In the present time of stress it seems good to me for a person to continue as he is" (1 Cor 7:26). This means no divorce for those married and no searching for a spouse for those single (1 Cor 7:27). This is not a popular message in a society where the divorce rate is nearly fifty-percent, and where many singles are partying, bar-hopping, fornicating, or using secular dating services to meet "a certain someone." Of course, Jesus is usually not popular. We don't crucify popular people.
In today's Gospel reading, Jesus reveals a few other outrageous truths. He maintains that happiness is choosing material poverty, hungering for holiness instead of pleasure, weeping for our sins, and being Christian enough to warrant persecution (see Lk 6:20-22). All this flies right in the face of our culture's lies. Jesus strikes again.
| PRAYER: | Jesus, may I humble myself and accept "the whole truth and nothing but the truth." |
| PROMISE: | "The world as we know it is passing away." –1 Cor 7:31 |
| PRAISE: | Praise You, Holy Spirit, for overshadowing Mary, Your Spouse (Lk 1:35). "Nothing is impossible with" You (Lk 1:37). |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College