How we answer this call must arise from each one’s heart.  But this is for sure: God wants us as combatants in the struggle to renew the world.  There are no excuses or hiding places that can rescind this call.

Memorial of St. Irenaeus
Amos 2:6-10, 13-16
Psalm 50:16bc-17, 18-19, 20-21, 22-23

M atthew 8:18-22 Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. (19) And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." (20) And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head." (21) Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." (22) But Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."

 
Meditation

G od minces no words.  The leaders of Israel will be punished for trampling on the weak and the just.  As they have crushed the needy, so now they face ruin.

Amos calls these crimes.  Our words are softer.  Predatory loans or long-term unemployment are problems discussed in polite tones.  “What a mess” gets said of immigration policy while chewing the hamburgers that undocumented workers have made.  The wars continue, but we have switched channels.  We create systems like labyrinths that few understand where no one seems to be responsible for all that is lost.  The urgency of people struggling to hang on goes mute.  Without a fiery defender, those in greatest need disappear from the screen.  Secure in our helplessness, we sit and sigh.

Like the prophet, Jesus sounds a thunderous wake-up call.  His words are not balanced or discreet.  No time remains to dally or debate.  On the move in faith we enter the battle for the living.  How we answer this call must arise from each one’s heart.  But this is for sure: God wants us as combatants in the struggle to renew the world.  There are no excuses or hiding places that can rescind this call.

Supplementary Reading

He is Strong in You

And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. . . – Romans 8:26

Do you ever get focused on what you consider to be a disadvantage or weakness in your life? Maybe there's something about yourself that you don't like physically. You may have even been through an unfair situation: a divorce, a bad business deal, or a bad break.

We all have things that can feel like disadvantages, things that make it harder on us. But just because you have a "disadvantage," just because you've been through a tough time doesn't mean you're supposed to sit back and settle where you are. No, God still has something great for you to do! He wants to show Himself strong in and through you. The Holy Spirit wants to help you during those times when you feel weak. If you will stay in faith and not get negative toward yourself or your future, then God can take what you think is a liability and turn it into an asset. What you think is a disadvantage God will turn around to be an advantage so you can move forward into the abundant life He has for you!

Father in heaven, today I give You all that I am. I invite You into the weak places in my life so that You can turn them into strengths. Thank You for working in my life and filling me with faith and expectancy. In Jesus' Name. Amen.—Joel & Victoria Osteen

For archive of previous Daily Meditation postings, please visit http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com/

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GOD BLESS US ALL!

O Theos Na Mas Evlogisi!
PRAY as if everything depended on HIM. ACT as if everything depended on YOU.