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One Bread, One Body - Reflection for July 16, 2023

GROUNDS FOR WHAT?

"For just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to him who sows and bread to him who eats, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but shall do My will, achieving the end for which I sent it." –Isaiah 55:10-11

Farmers periodically take samples of their ground and have them tested. If your spiritual ground was tested now, would you be:

When a farmer finds from testing that his soil is deficient, he does not ignore this information but takes measures to improve the condition of his ground. This should also be true spiritually. If you are an infertile footpath or rocky ground, repent and go to Confession as soon as possible. If you are fertile but unfruitful, ask the Holy Spirit to convict you of your thorny compromise with the ways of the world (Jn 16:8). If you want to increase from a 30-fold harvest to 60-fold or 100-fold, you need community life and daily Bible study.

In good ground, you can grow almost anything worth growing. In bad ground, you can hardly grow anything. The condition of the ground is critical. Recognize the condition of your ground and improve it.

PRAYER: Father, may every seed You plant in me grow fully.
PROMISE: "I consider the sufferings of the present to be as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed in us." –Rm 8:18
PRAISE: Alleluia! Jesus is risen from the dead! Alleluia forever!

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Acknowledgement

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